


Miss D

by noblelilium



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate universe - Mafia, Anal Sex, Angst, As much as he can be, Everyone loves Luffy, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Love Confessions, Lucci is actually nice, M/M, One-Sided Attraction
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-04
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2018-02-16 03:06:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 17
Words: 47,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2253504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noblelilium/pseuds/noblelilium
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Monkey D. Luffy has been gifted with a better-than-average life with a healthy relationship. But as new secrets spring up and dangerous people begin to surround him, can he fully trust the person he loves the most?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Baratie

**Author's Note:**

> I realized I hadn't uploaded this fic yet on here, (and it's my most popular one on any site) Enjoy!

I took a good look at the people around me. Some were wearing the same maid's outfit I was, but others were wearing nurses' outfits. We were all in a dressing room for our restaurant. The Baratie was a very popular restaurant. People came and went, and on the outside, it was your average five-star restaurant. However, when the sun when down, the lights go on to reveal it to be a male strip joint. Not many people know about that little fact, but for those who did, the place gets packed. The odd part is that this place was originally meant for women, but more males kept on arriving, so it became a place for homosexuals. I looked next to me to see a tall, thin man with heavy make-up on, smiling in the mirror. An up-beat tune could be heard. One of the assistant managers, Sanji, called the strippers to get ready for the show, as we would open in ten minutes.   
  
"Let's do our best today, right, Bon-chan?" I smiled. He turned to me and smiled back.  
  
"Yes! We shall wow them as always, D-chan!" he addressed me by the name I went by here. It wasn't my real name, which was Luffy, but it fit. When I first met him, he gave me that nickname, so people here call me that, even my boyfriend.  
  
My boyfriend was perfect. At first, people would get scared of the uneasy aura he gave off, but underneath, he was a swell guy. I'm not a stripper here, but a waiter –er-  _waitress_  here because he refused to have me 'exposed to perverted, hormone-driven men' as he put it. For protection of my identity, I wore a mask that covered half my face, even my scar. Scratch that,  **especially**  my scar.   
  
When I first told my friends I worked here, they took it a lot better than I would've guessed. Usopp, my long-nosed liar of a friend, passed out when he heard the news. Nami, a money-loving, violent girl, squealed when she heard it. Zoro, well, I didn't exactly tell my moss-haired friend yet. I had perfect contact with him, despite him being in college. It wasn't that I didn't trust him, it was that I was afraid of what Zoro could do, or rather, tell that information. He could tell it to my elder brother, who he went to school with, and he would have me quit immediately. Ace would definitely disapprove of this job. But I needed the money, I knew Ace was in college, so I was alone, to fend for myself, and he was the one who wanted me to get a job.   
  
However, I had made many friends out of this. The manager during the Night-Baratie was my boyfriend, so he was to one who gave me the job in the first place. Lucci was yet another thing Ace would disapprove of. Well, it was Ace's fault I ended up with Lucci anyway. Don't get me wrong, I love Lucci very much, but Ace was the one who drove me to him. Figuratively, of course. Oh, where to begin?  
  
A deep secret of mine is very, very dark. I'm in love with my own elder brother. At first I thought it was normal, but I realized I needed Ace to be with me, I loved having him around, and I longed for him to kiss me. It's wrong, I know, and because of it, I went into a depression because I knew he would never look at me that way. Even if I told him, he'd reject me. That's what hurts the most. However, as I tried to avoid Ace more, in order not to lose control and frighten him, I began to notice someone else. Rob Lucci. He was silent, aggressive, and a lot of people feared him. But, for reasons unbeknownst to me, I didn't. I've caught myself eyeing him with pure curiosity. A little too much. Silently, I watched him. Every move he made fascinated me. His wavy black hair he either let move freely or tie up in a ponytail would shape his face without fault, the way sweat glistened off his arms as he worked out in P.E., how he was soft around birds, mainly pigeons, I just kept watching him.  
  
I asked Vivi, a close friend, about it, and she told me it was love. Soon, Nami and Usopp found out. They made similar reactions to when I told them I worked night-time at Baratie. But this was before I worked there. I told them to keep it a secret, otherwise, Ace would find out. That would've been horrible. With a lot (and I mean a whole lot) of encouragement, I finally obtained enough bravery to ask him out. When I did, he just stared at me. I thought I would be rejected, which I expected, but however…  
  
 _"I'll pick you up at seven."_  Those words made me happier than I've been in a very long time. He turned and walked away. That began our relationship. I'm seventeen, and Lucci is twenty, going on twenty-one, and we've dated since my freshman year, so that would make, including this year, four years we've been together. Ace still doesn't know about him. That was the one thing I was thankful for: Ace was thick-headed. How I managed to elude Lucci from him for one whole year, when he was still in high school, was a miracle.   
  
Back to the present, the doors were open, and males began to enter the restaurant. I straightened my bow on the maid costume, pulled up the black lace stockings I had on, tightened my mask, just in case, and headed out. When I first tried heels, I fell over five times. Everyone was laughing at me. I saw that even Lucci had a ghost of a smile at that time. Eventually, I was used to them. When I opened the double-doors, 'Hips Don't Lie' was blasting through the speakers. I saw Bon-chan headed to one of his assigned tables, and I went to one of mine.   
  
There were two kind gentlemen who were on a date together, neither one paying any mind to the strip show. I gave them each a copy of the wine selection. I was about to leave, but it appeared they already knew what to order. They each ordered a Bloody Mary, one of our many alcoholic drinks, and I nodded, jotting it down on my notepad. I gave them one of my infamous grins and went to the kitchen to tell/collect their order.  
  
When I returned, I offered them the dinner menu, which they gladly accepted, whilst giving them their well-prepared drinks. I offered the specials, but they declined, politely, though. I kept smiling and took their order. It was rather rare to see such kind people here. Others were rather rude, drunk, or both, and would try to look up my dress. You would think they would go to the Day-Baratie instead. I guess they hadn't come out of the closet yet. Well, they looked happy together. Hm… Lucci hasn't taken me out in a while, maybe we should see a movie sometime. Yeah! That sounds nice.  
  
I gave them their order and moved to another table. Two men, who looked like they hated each other, were sitting at a table, glaring at each other. They seemed rather familiar. I shrugged it off and asked for their order. One was a redhead with a gothic look, and a pissed off one, too. The other was tan, had tattoos on his arms, dark circles under his light, but clouded, grey eyes, and brown hair. I heard the redhead mumble "The strongest stuff you got," I turned to the tan man and he nodded.   
  
"Same thing, wait…" he looked at me from head to toe. "Don't I know you from somewhere?" Uh oh. So I did know them.  Just keep in denial.  
  
"I'm sorry, but this is the first time we've met," I lied. I'm only a bad liar when I try to be a good liar. When I'm not thinking, I actually lie very well.   
  
"No, I'm positive we've net before," he made a thinking expression. "What do you thing, Mr. Eustass?" he addressed the other man. Wait… Eustass? Eustass Kid? I have like eight martial arts classes with him!   
  
"Yeah, Trafalgar. He looks a lot like that Luffy kid, doesn't he?" Trafalgar? As in Trafalgar Law? He sits next to me in math and English! I didn't recognize him at first because he was wearing a fluffy hat, covering his hair, and he wasn't in his school uniform.  
  
Cold sweats began to break down my face. I couldn't really hold this charade up for much longer. "I-I'm afraid you have me confused with someone else." God, I hoped they believed me. It would mean trouble if the whole school were to find out about this. Or worse: Ace could find out. Before getting a response, I quickly excused myself politely and ran to the kitchen.   
  
The rest of the hours went smoothly, so far. Not one jerk had ruined my night yet. I finished cleaning a used table and I turned around to my next table and I nearly dropped the pan with dirty glassed and dishes when I saw who was there. It was someone who I hadn't seen for three years. My older brother, Ace. I couldn't believe it.  
  
Why was he here? Did he know I worked here? Wait… he was sitting across from someone. I didn't recognize, but he had a very funky hairdo. It made him look like a pineapple. He must be from Ace's college. I didn't know Ace was gay. And I've known him all my life! So he was on a date with this guy. My heart cringed at that realization. He was on a date… with someone else. I couldn't help but be jealous. I still had a crush on him, no matter how much I denied it. I bit my lip and walked to their table hesitantly.


	2. A Medical Form

"Hello, I'm D-Chan, and I'll be your server this evening. What can I start you two gentlemen off with?" I introduced myself and asked for their order. I hadn't stuttered once. Luck was on my side. Ace used to always make me nervous, stutter, and blush all at the same time. I guess now that I've nearly entirely moved on, I wasn't as nervous around him anymore. But to see him with another person… truth be told, I was dying on the inside. But, he looked very happy. That's what matters most.

"Yeah, we'd like a bottle of champagne," the pineapple stated.

"A special occasion?" I raised an eyebrow while jotting down the order.

"It's our two-year anniversary," he announced. I snapped my pencil in half. For two years, Ace had a boyfriend. And I was unaware of it. I guess it's payback for me hiding Lucci from him for nearly half a decade. They gave me an odd look.

"Sorry, I have a strong grip sometimes," I quickly explained. "Congratulations!" I said. "Your order will be with you two shortly," I said with fake happiness. But they bought it entirely. Ace didn't even recognize me.

I turned and bumped into something hard, dropping my notepad. I opened my eye to see what I just crashed into. It was a scary-looking guy. He had blonde hair, tan skin, and a long scar vertically along the side of his face. "Watch it, bitch!" he snapped.

"I'm sorry sir," I politely said, ignoring the rude comment. I picked the notepad up and was about to go to the kitchen, but he got in my way. "Sir, please let me by," I requested. He did the opposite.

"Get down on your knees and apologize," he commanded. "Do you know who I am?"

"Should I?" I asked, while people looked up from their tables to watch this. As a response, he gave me one hard punch to the jaw, sending me back a few feet. I heard Bon-chan shout "D-Chan!"

The man looked at me surprised, but his expression turned into a creepy, stalker-ish one. "So you're the infamous D-Chan," the bastard looked at me with lustful eyes. "I heard quite the story about you. How you were able to take down an entire gang of seven singlehandedly when they tried to take you." I glared at him. So he wanted to do the same thing. The slut. He walked over to me and held me by the throat, my feet coming off the ground.

We had the entire restaurant's attention now. Even one of our strippers' dancing stopped. His grip tightened around my airway, and I was gasping for oxygen. "Not so tough now, are ya?" he spoke in a slurred tone which led me to believe he was drunk. I couldn't lay a hand on him. Not without Lucci's permission. It would result in a huge lawsuit. He eyed the Triple X section. It's where customers rent a room to have, well, sex. Oh no. He wanted to- ! My eyes widened. He hoisted me over his shoulder and began to walk towards it.

"Let me go!" I demanded. He just laughed at my attempts to break free.

"Oi!" I turned and saw Kaku, a worker here. "I know you can't fight back, but this time, I think Lucci would make an exception!" I heard him shout. That was all I needed. I gave him a hard punch to the back of the head, successfully making him let go of me. I stood up, dusting myself off. I was about to walk away, but something grabbed my heel. He was still conscious, the dick! He hoisted me by my foot and flung me into some poor couple's table. Weakened, I didn't know exactly what was going on anymore, but I knew he resumed to carry me and take me to that dreaded room. He stopped for some reason. I lifted my head and saw Lucci.

"I will give you three seconds to run for your life," his voice was cold and unforgiving. "Three."

"Oh, how touching, his boyfriend is going to stand up for him," the crude man laughed manically. He looked at me. "This runt barely put up a fight, tch, weakling." I stiffened. I hated being called weak. Lucci knew that all too well. This seemed to add to his fury.

"Two."

"You can't lay a hand on me. I'm Don Quixote Bellamy, heir to the Don Quixote family. My father could put you in prison faster than you can say 'I'm so sorry, Bellamy-sama," he bragged.

"One." Bellamy just kept grinning as if that was going to stop Lucci from kicking the crap out of him.

I heard a loud BAM! from above me. His grip on me completely disappeared. I tilted my head up and saw the thug halfway across the restaurant, unconscious. Security came and dragged him out. Well, that's the end of that. Lucci helped me up. "Are you okay?" he asked with the soft tone he only used around me.

"Fine!" I grinned. I felt him brush my bangs aside.

"You're bleeding," he declared. I shrugged.

"So?" he looked like he really wanted to facepalm right now. He took my hand and led me to the dressing room. People gave us looks as if we were insane. Law and Kid were the only ones who it seemed like a regular thing to.

He closed the door, set me down in a chair, took a washcloth (God knows how he found it so fast), and began to dab the cut on my forehead. He was only soft around me. I didn't really know why. We just sat there in silence as he tended my wound. Not liking it, I chose to speak, "Are you mad at me?" Lucci didn't answer. He was always a man of few words, but I could tell he was mad. I was about to apologize when he cut me off.

"Not even close. It's that guy who nearly raped you is who I'm mad at," his voice was unchanging.

"I had it under control!" I protested. He raised one of his curly eyebrows.

"I could see that by the way you were being hauled to the Triple X room." I childishly stuck my tongue out at him.

"But," he looked at me when I paused, "thank you, Lucci." I smiled at him.

"No problem." There was a long awkward pause. At least, it was awkward for me. "You can take the rest of the night off," he told me. I nodded. "Here," he handed me a red t-shirt, jeans, tennis shoes, sock and a sleeveless jacket. "Go change," he requested. I took the clothes and began to undress myself. His voice cut me off. "Not in front of me." I blushed slightly and stood up, looking for a private place to change.

I found one and began to remove my dress. The rest of my clothing followed, including my mask. I pulled the jeans over my legs and hip, eventually zipping it up and buttoning it. I was about to put on my shirt by I noticed something. An envelope sat at a desk. Curious, I walked towards it and picked it up. It was

addressed to Lucci. Maybe I shouldn't… too late, I did. It was a medical form. What the-?

I read the words, but they were long words that probably were medical terms. I need a dictionary for all these words. The only ones I actually recognized were 'Dear Mr. Rob Lucci.' Unconsciously, I walked to where Lucci was, not noticing the look of horror on his face as I tried to comprehend the words on the letter. I looked at him. "Lucci…" I said in a serious tone. His forest eyes were very wide. An aura of tension filled the room. "What is this?" I asked. He walked over to me, his eyes looked calmer now, and he snatched it out of my hands.

"My medical record," he stated. His voice had a tiny bit of anger in it. A tiny bit. He always gets moody when I touch his stuff without permission. Interpret that as you will.

"Why would they send you your medical record?" I asked. "Is there something wrong?" my heart nearly stopped at that thought. I didn't want anything bad to happen to him. Was he hiding something? It was impossible to tell with his emotionless expression, but from time to time, I could read him.

"No," he replied. "Nothing at all." I sighed in relief.

"Thank God!" I said happily. Out of my happiness, I gave him a bear hug. Scratch that, I dove into his arms. The extra weight which he didn't expect sent us, rather him, down to the floor. His teeth gritted when his poor head made contact with the floor. I just laughed as his top hat fell off. I knew I was the only one in the world he would let get away with this.

"Hey, Lucci," I straddled him and our faces were almost touching. He gave me a look that said 'Go on.' "We should go out sometime!" I grinned.

"Alright," he talked in a calm voice, "where would you like to go? I could make a reservation at-" I cut him off.

"How about a movie?" I eagerly offered. He always suggested taking me out to some fancy restaurant, and at times I agreed, but I thought it was too expensive so I try to avoid getting him into total bankruptcy. He didn't seem to mind spending around eight thousand dollars' worth of food on my eating habits in a fancy restaurant.

"Okay," his voice was unchanging.

"You pick the movie this time!" I grinned. Last time I picked the Pirates of the Caribbean fourth movie, since I love pirates, and I liked it a whole lot. I don't know about him, though.

"Last time I did, you were paranoid for quite some time," he said. Oh, right. Last time he picked a movie, it was horror and I had nightmares for weeks.

"I'll be fine! I promise," I grinned. He still seemed a bit unsure, but he agreed.

"What's bothering you?" My eyes widened. How had he—? I thought I had put up a pretty good front.

"Nothing, why?" I smiled, trying to change the topic. He didn't know how I felt about Ace. I was too afraid to tell him. He might be disgusted and throw me away. Abandon me. I didn't want that to happen. I loved Lucci too much. Whenever I was with him, I could forget about my impure feelings towards my brother. He wasn't a replacement for Ace. He was someone else. Lucci made me whole. That's something Ace could never make me feel. He only saw me as a brother. Lucci saw me as more.

"You're lying," my smile died as he said that. Am I that bad of a liar? Using his elbows, he pushed his upper body off the floor, causing me to back up as well. "Tell me what's wrong," he commanded. I looked down so that my bangs covered my eyes. I had no idea what to do. The stress was bringing tears to my eyes. If I told him, I would lose him. I hugged myself, and started to shake. I was really torn. What to do? Should I take the chance and lose the best thing that came into my life? Or wallow in my grief? I felt his strong arms wrap around me and one of his hands stroke my hair gently. "It's okay," he reassured me. "Just tell me," he asked. I felt him gently kiss the side of my head.

"I-I can't," my voice was on the verge of being entirely broken. Salty, tiny streams of tears rolled slowly down my face.

"Why not?" His voice was soft, as if talking to a child.

"You'd hate me," I mumbled. But he heard it. I felt his frame stiffen.

"No matter what you have to say, I will never be able to hate you," his whisper sent shivers down my spine. "It's okay," he repeated, "if it's that painful, I can wait until you're ready to tell me." My lips curved into a smile. I'm glad he decided to wait for me to tell him. He was so understanding.

"Lucci…" I pulled away from his chest so that I was at eye level with him. Lucci's thumb glided across my cheek, drying my face of tears. Our faces were so close. I felt my face heating up. My skinny arms circled his neck and I pulled him even closer. Getting the message, his eyes started to close and he leaned in. Just as we were about to kiss, a loud 'slam' rudely interrupted us.

"Lucci!" I heard a voice of pure anger. We both turned to our left to see an infuriated Sanji. You almost could see the fiery rage behind him. "Why on earth did you hit a man belonging to the Don Quixote family?!" I could've sworn I saw smoke coming out of his nostrils. He slammed the door behind him, no doubt gaining the attention of our customers.

"You mean that blonde idiot?" Lucci asked.

"Yes! Wait…" his voice calmed and he looked at the position we were in. I was shirtless, Lucci's hands were just above my ass, my hands were around his neck, my legs overlapped his hips, and our faces were dangerously close, mine was very red. "Am I interrupting something?" he asked politely.

"No," I shook my head.

"Yes," Lucci growled.

"Anyways, do you know how much power his father has?!" Sanji's voice rose again. "He could shut us down entirely, and you just gave his son a one-hit K.O.!"

"There's a good reason for that," Lucci retorted.

"No reason could be good enough to risk our restaurant's business!" Sanji screamed.

"Does nearly raping Luffy qualify?" Lucci's voice was very cold by now.

"He what?" Sanji looked baffled. Lucci nodded. "Tch." Sanji took out a smoke. "Luffy can fight for himself, you don't have to step in all the time," he murmured.

"I felt I needed to," Lucci replied.

"Anyways, Luffy," he turned to me, "you might want to head back to your house soon. I just saw your brother leave here."

"What?" I blinked.

"He just left, saying he was going to see you, so you might want to head out now, he's got a five-minute head start." It took a full ten seconds for that to register into my brain. And it hit me. HARD. I jumped out of Lucci's arms, sprinted to where the rest of my clothes were, redressed, grabbed my bag, and returned in under fifteen seconds. Both Sanji and Lucci blinked stupidly at my speed. I stepped over to my boyfriend.

"Bye Lucci!" I stooped down to give him a quick hug, which he returned. "Bye, Sanji!" I waved and made a sprint out the back door, leaving them dumbfounded as to how I could move so fast. I just hoped I could make it home before Ace did.


	3. Reunion

Panting harshly, I wrestled with my keys for a bit until I found the right one. Why did I have so many keys? I don't remember having about ten locks that need keys… Oh well, I beat Ace to my apartment. That's the most important thing. I unlocked my door, and made my way in. A huge wave a relief passed by me. I slumped down the door and tried to breathe normally and calm down.

Ace was coming. He was going to see me. I smiled. My brother, after three long years, I was going to see him again. But, I remembered he was with that other man at the restaurant. It didn't matter. I tried to recall how much he had changed. His face definitely was more mature and good looking, his voice slightly deeper, and he was quite muscular. I sighed. But he still was the same in many ways as well. He still had his freckles, his hair was still wavy and obsidian, his skin a soft cream color, and… I didn't notice the blush appearing on my face as I fantasized about my brother. Oh, God, it's so wrong, but I can't help it! Ace is too… perfect! At least in my eyes he is. No, bad, BAD Luffy! Stop with the fantasies and focus on reality. Ace is your brother, not your boyfriend. That role belongs to Lucci.

Slowly, regaining my composure, I stood up hung up my maid outfit in a secret closet, should Zoro or anyone else who doesn't know about my job visit, and stretched a bit. I occupied myself with a manga novel as I awaited Ace's 'surprise' arrival. I had to remember he didn't recognize me at the restaurant, he hasn't seen me in three years, and I have no idea how much he's changed. I think I can manage that. About thirty minutes later, as I was just about to go to sleep, I heard a knock on the door. I smiled. I strode over to the door to open it to find Ace with a huge grin on his face. "I'm back!" he shouted in joy. My face lit up in happiness, despite my previous knowing of his coming.

"Ace!" I gave him a large bear hug, proving I was overjoyed at his return, which I was. He returned it eagerly.

"It's been a while, Lu!" He called me by my nickname. "You've gotten taller!" he remarked. I laughed and invited him in. I asked him if he already had dinner (although I knew the answer, I didn't want to raise suspicion) and he nodded. We spent the next few hours catching up on what we missed. He even talked about that pineapple-head, his name was Marco apparently. I noticed he talked about Marco quite a lot, so I decided to make sure of something.

"Are you and Marco dating?" I bravely asked. He seemed stupefied at my question. For a while, we just stood there in silence. My heart was beating at an incredible pace, awaiting the answer. It either was going to be broken, or saved for the time being. The he surprised me by busting out laughing.

"Are you serious?" he managed between laughs. I just had a dumbfounded look on my face. "Me and Marco…" he sniggered to prevent completely laughing, "dating!" He started to laugh so hard, his eyes began to water. After some time, he calmed down. "Of course not. I just can't imagine me and him together, it's just unnatural!" he exclaimed.

"I see, so does today mark a special event?" I asked. Uh oh, damn my mouth. Hopefully he doesn't suspect me. Fate was on my side again. God, I love fate now. It's taken my side so much.

"Well, other than returning home and… oh!" he seemed to recall something.

"What?" I curiously interrogated.

"It's my second year being part of Whitebeard's family," he grinned.

"Whitebeard?" the name didn't sound familiar, but I might've heard Lucci mention it once or twice.

"You don't know who that is?" I shook my head. He just laughed. "Well, the rest of the world does. He's the strongest man alive. He's like a father to me. Marco introduced us a while back and he took me in. I really respect him," he smiled.

"That's nice," I remarked. Ace had another father, but he hates him with a passion. I don't hate his father… that much. He was the reason my father was killed. We are blood brothers, really! Well, half-brothers. We share a mother, Portgas D. Rouge, but she divorced Ace's father, Gol D. Roger, married my father, Monkey D. Dragon, and had me. It's complicated. Ace took his mother's name because he feels responsible for my father's death, even though it wasn't his fault. Mom died from giving birth to me, but Ace says that she never regretted giving birth to me. He recalled, at age three, his mother was smiling when she held me just after I was born. I wondered why. I've only seen her in pictures, but I can vaguely, very vaguely, remember a streak of pinkish-blond hair curving a chin that held a soft smile.

"Anything interesting happen while I was gone?" he questioned.

"I, uh, got a job," I probably just risked everything by that sentence.

"Really? Where?" I seemed to have spiked his curiosity.

"I, um, s-serve people," I stuttered.

"Please tell me you mean food," Ace looked very desperate right now.

"I do, why?" he made a huge sigh of relief.

"Uh, nothing. I was thinking something else," he chuckled. Then I realized what he meant. My face started to heat up.

"Ace, you pervert!" I screamed while throwing a pillow I had at hand at him. He just laughed some more.

"Sorry, being in college really caused my mind to seep into the gutter," he explained. He crawled over to me. "So," he put his arm around my shoulder. He was so close to me. I forced a blush to keep down, less he notice how fast my heart was beating. "How's my little brother doing?"

"F-Fine," I mentioned. "I've made many friends, and even a b—," I slapped my hand over my mouth immediately.

"Even a what?" his eyebrows raised.

"Nothing," I squeaked.

"A girlfriend?" he suggested.

"Something like that," I muttered, hoping he wouldn't hear. Fate brutally betrayed me.

"Are you hiding something?" He interrogated.

'Only for the past four years…' I thought. "No," I denied, obviously lying.

"You're a terrible liar, Lu," he stated bluntly.

"Uh, well, gosh! Look at the time, we should be going to bed!" I looked at my wrist.

"You're not wearing a watch," he sweatdropped.

"All the more reason!" I know it didn't make sense, but I was desperate. He sighed.

"What are you hiding?" his voice was very serious now. I forgot he still had his arm around my neck, so that prevented any escape for me.

"Nothing!" I reassured, but I was sure I looked dead guilty.

"Liar," he retorted.

"Don't we all have secrets? Why can't you respect that I have one?" I said.

"I do, but if it's serious, then I want you to tell me," he leaned in closer so that our noses were touching. "Why's your face all red?"

"N-No reason, it's just hot in here. And the secret isn't serious, but I kinda don't want to talk about it."

"Fair enough," he pulled away from me. "I'll crash on the couch for tonight," he yawned. I nodded and headed for bed. Somehow, I managed to fool him. Thank the Lord. I crawled into bed and prepared myself for the school day tomorrow, along with a date with Lucci.


	4. Nightmare

_I felt a breeze pass me. On instinct, I wrapped my arms around me and tried to retain warmth. I was on a bed, shirtless. I heard a voice say, "Are you cold?" I just responded by shivering. The voice continued, "Don't worry, I'll keep you warm." I felt someone's hands gently push me down onto the bed and straddle me. The person on top of me was shirtless as well. I knew it was a man because, a) he was physically larger and more muscular than me, b) he had no breasts, and c) his voice was very deep. Who was this? His tongue darted out and licked my neck. I shuddered and gripped his arms. Why was I allowing this stranger to do such things to me? The figure nibbled and sucked on the area between my neck and shoulder. I moaned a little, before clamping my mouth shut. I was making such embarrassing sounds! My face was so red, it could light up the room, I was sure of it. The figure stopped before asking, "Do you like it?"_

_He looked me straight in the eye and I immediately knew who he was. There was only one man on Earth who had those eyes full of love for me. Those forest green eyes belonged to no other than my boyfriend who I loved so much. "Lucci…" I called his name. All the fear I had up to this point completely disappeared. If it was a stranger, I would've been scared out of my mind. But I relaxed because it was Lucci who was touching me. Without warning, he kissed me, sliding his tongue in my mouth. I didn't hesitate to wrap my arms around his neck and deepen the kiss. His arms circled my waist, and he pulled me closer. I gasped as our bare chests touched._

_"Would you like to go further?" he asked. I nodded. "Good," he said. I shut my eyes as he licked my chest. I wrapped my arms around his neck, begging for more. Funny, I thought Lucci's hair was longer, and curlier… I reopened my eyes and saw that it was no longer Lucci on top of me. It was Ace. My eyes widened so much after realization struck me._

_"What's wrong?" Ace asked. "Isn't this what you want?"_

_"Where's Lucci?" I asked. Ace grinned evilly, not the carefree grins I was used to. I became scared. In an instant, I was not on a bed, no one was on top of me, and I had regained some articles of clothing to cover my torso._

_"Luffy…" I heard someone call my name. I turned around but I couldn't find someone._

_"Luffy," the voice called again. I kept looking around until I saw a mirror. Cautiously, I made my way towards it. I put my hand on it, and another person's hand did the same. I thought it was my reflection, but when I looked, I saw Lucci. "Forgive me," he said._

_"For what?" I innocently interrogated. He just closed his eyes. I noticed there was a huge hole in his chest, where his heart would be. A thick layer of crimson liquid exited the hole and poured down his chest, staining it along with his pants. In shock, I tore my hand away from the mirror, as if to erase that image. I looked at my hand and saw that it was stained with blood. Lucci's blood. No. No! NO! I let out the most gruesome scream after that._

I jolted out of my bed, wide awake. However, that picture was still fresh in my mind. What was that? Along with the medical form from earlier, is Lucci really okay? That had to be the most terrifying dream I've ever had. The door opened and I saw Ace.

"Oh, you're up already?" I back away in my bed out of instinct. The frightening Ace from the dream still plagued my mind. "What's wrong?" he asked. I shook my head rapidly. That was only a dream. But it felt so real!

"Nothing, I just had a nightmare," I quickly said.

"That brings back memories," Ace smiled nostalgically.

"Eh?" I uttered.

"Do you remember? Whenever you had nightmares, you used to crawl into my bed and I'd comfort you." I recalled that. I grinned as well.

"So," he began as he sat next to me. "What was it about? Usually it'd be memories of your father dying, or me leaving you."

"I had a nightmare," I hesitated. How could I put this so that he wouldn't suspect me? "Someone close to me died…" I hoped he wouldn't push it further.

"Who was it?" Damn.

"It… was Zoro," I lied. Ace just patted my head.

"I saw him yesterday, he's fine. I promise," he said reassuringly.

"Say," I began. "Where did you go to celebrate the whole Whitebeard thing?" I wondered why the  _hell_  he would go to a strip bar to celebrate such a thing.

"The Baratie," he stated.

"Doesn't that place become a strip club at night or something?" I said, trying to arouse suspicion.

"It does, but Marco was dead drunk by the time we had reserved a reasonable place, and it would be improper. I've seen him drunk before. Not pretty," Ace shook his head. "So we went there." My brother stopped, as if he was thinking deeply. "I saw a waitress, or waiter, whatever…, who looked remarkably like you." Crap.

"I work in another restaurant. Ask Grandpa, he'll tell you," God, Ace was so close to the truth! I'd die if he found out. Actually one thing would probably lead to another, and he'd find out about Lucci in no time.

"Wow, it's getting kind of late, shouldn't you be headed for school?" Ace said as he glanced at the clock. I followed suit and my eyes bulged out of my head. Damn, I was so late! Using my speedy powers again, I was ready very quickly and sprinted to school. It wasn't that far away, but I still gave all my energy. If I was late again, Smokey would definitely kill me!

I rushed out the door, completely ignoring my stomach that begged for food. I zipped past a corner, unexpectedly bumping into an oranged hair friend of mine. I rubbed by bruised forehead (which still had that cut from last night, mind you) and apologized.

"What's the rush?" Nami asked. "You're not late," she stated.

"I'm… not?" I said rather dumbly.

"No, doofus! Did you forget what Mr. Aokiji announced two days ago?!" She had her hands on her hips, a frown upon her face, but I knew she wasn't ireally/i mad. Okay, maybe she was. This is my best friend since elementary school, Nami. I tend to make friends with girls easier than I make friends with boys. Probably because I'm gay. However, Nami is proud of that fact and uses this to her advantage. If I were to sum Nami up into two words, they would be 'Yaoi Fangirl'. It gets annoying sometimes how much detail she wants about me and Lucci. But she's cool, when she doesn't yell at me or beat me with her metal-like fists. Back to the present, I think Nami was done lecturing me about paying attention or something.

"What?" I asked, wanting her to repeat again. Wrong answer. That earned me a good sock to the noggin and a good bump on my head. I thought she was going to hit me again, but I was wrong. She pinned me against a wall and looked at my forehead.

"What happened?" she demanded, letting go of my wrists.

"Just some guy trying to get into my pants last night. Lucci took care of him though," I told her.

"You have to stop letting Lucci fight for you! You're strong, I know that!"

"He threw me against a table!" I argued.

"Anyways, what happened after? Who was the guy anyway?" Nami questioned.

"Don Quixote Bellamy, why?" I blinked. Her face faulted.

"WHAT?!" she screamed. Oh Lord, there go my ears.

"Is he important?" I dumbly asked.

"He so is! He's the heir to the Don Quixote family!" she tried to persuade me that he was important somehow, but I didn't get it.

"He mentioned that before Lucci rearranged his face," I chuckled. Nami just pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed deeply.

"Anyways, why on earth are you dressed like that? It's fifteen below zero. And you're wearing a short sleeve shirt, pants, and no layers." Oh… that's why I was cold.

She sighed. "It's gonna cost you, but here," she took off her brown sweater and gave it to me. I smiled.

"Thanks, Nami!" I grinned. "Shishishishi..." She blushed and looked away.

"You owe me eighty dollars now, happy?" she pouted. I just laughed.

"Your face is red," I noted.

"Because it's cold, you idiot!" she punched me again, not wanting to accept the fact that she was doing something nice for once. And it didn't include trying to hit my head to make me learn my lesson or something. "Let's go, or we'll be late," she remarked. I nodded and we both headed for school.

When we arrived, I met Usopp and laughed at his swollen face. Vivi explained that he passed out due to the lack of oxygen in this altitude and she had to slap him awake. Our school was sort of on top of a hill, so we had to hike it up there in this snowy weather. Oh yeah! Christmas was coming! I had to get something for Lucci, Ace, Nami, Usopp, and Vivi. I had found a present for Zoro already. Grandpa doesn't want any presents, he told me so. I knew if I disobeyed him, he'd hit me. Hard. Oh, I already sent one to Shanks back in Ireland. Shanks was the greatest guy in the world. He sent me cards for my birthday and all major holidays, and he adopted me when my father died. Although now that I'm older, he's overseas and Ace was taking care of me. He runs a big corporation that is similar to a mafia family, and I'm the heir! It's so awesome, but he hasn't asked me to come over and get a mission or something. My being the heir to the Akagami family is a deep secret that no one, not even Lucci or Ace, knows. Getting back to the Christmas present, he wrote back and told me it was well thought out. I thought so too. I gave him a keg of Guinness, his favorite beer. Alright, for the remainder of people who needed presents…, I counted them on my fingers. I needed five presents. Unknowingly, I had made it through half my classes and was now heading to lunch.

I got my meal and sat down, keeping in thought about the Christmas presents I was going to get for everyone. I just ate while Nami hit Usopp for babbling on about something he made up. He was such a good liar, why wouldn't she at least pretend to be fooled by them? I get fooled by them all the time. I'm gullible, but I don't really care anymore. Nami was done kicking the crap out of him and turned to me.

"So, how far have you two gotten?" she asked excitedly.

"Nami, I don't think Luffy wants us to butt into his business too much," Vivi tried to stop Nami from going full-on fangirl, and I was quite grateful for it. Nami asks  **very**  personal questions sometimes.

"Don't be silly, so, answer my question!" she said, anticipating the answer.

"Well, we have seen each other shirtless, but—" I was cut off by her outrageous squeal. Damn, why'd I have to answer?

"Luffy," Usopp got my attention, "Do you want to hang out after school, and play video games or something?"

"Sorry, I have a date with Lucci," I explained. He sighed.

"It's either a date or work! When are we going to hang out like we used to?" he asked. I shrugged. I felt someone put their arm around me and pulled me close. I looked up and saw Law.

"What exactly  _is_  your line of work, Mister Luffy?" he raised an eyebrow. Crap, crap, damn, double-damn! He was there last night, and he was on to me.

"Food service." Might as well answer him.

"Really," he pulled me so our faces were inches apart. He really liked to do that for some reason. "Because an interesting thing happened last night where I

saw someone who looks suspiciously like you." I looked to my friends for help. They didn't aid me. Aurgh! Screw it! I took Law by the elbow and dragged him away from the table, a surprised look was upon his face.

I found an empty classroom and shoved him in there, breathing a sigh of relief. "Listen, yes it was me last night, but could you keep it a secret?" I pleaded.

His smirk always confused me. Was it a good thing or a bad thing? "I, much like the rest of the world, Mister Luffy, have a price."

"What?" As a response, he leaned in close to me and whispered something in my ear. My face lit up faster than I could wolf down food and I shoved him away. "Law!"

"I'm kidding." Well, that's a relief. He whispered something rather dirty into my ear. "Seventy-five should do," he told me. I just sighed and picked out seventy-five hundred dollars out of my wallet. The Akagami family was rather rich, so I had a lot of money to spare. His eyes widened very much.

"What?" I asked dumbly.

"Take off two zeros in that amount," he told me. Oh… I gave him the right amount and shoved the rest back into my wallet. "How rich are you?" he questioned. I shrugged. He just ruffled my hair, chuckled, and then left the room.

The rest of the day went by smoothly, Nami wrote down copies of the homework for me, because she knew I wouldn't do it. After the last bell rang, I headed out of the school, Nami next to me. She lived across the street from me, but Usopp lived farther away, so we had to part when his father picked him up. Nami and I were now talking about pointless things that had no real importance, like who was the strictest teacher, Magellan or Buggy. I jumped slightly when my cell phone rang. I recognized the ringtone was the one I had set for Lucci, even without looking at the ID.

"It's Lucci," I announced. Nami immediately got hearts in her eyes and was put speaker on before answering it. Wow she's fast. I felt a shiver down my spine when I saw her face. It was very stalker-ish. Even more than the one Bellamy had. I'm scared of yaoi fangirls now. She always gets disturbing expressions on her face.

"Hi," I began, Nami was listening closely. Too close for comfort. He responded with the same greeting. All we talked about was where we were meeting and at what time. I told him I was getting a present for him before Christmas break, so I might be late. He seemed fine with it and told me he was getting me one as well. Actually, he already bought it for me. We exchanged our goodbyes with the promise to meet in the park at four-ish and I hung up. Nami hugged me (really it was more like attacked) and made me swear to tell her the details of the date. I agreed and hoped she would stop trying to break my ribs. We waved goodbye and I headed to a certain shop with a good present in mind for Lucci.

I made a stop at the house, noticing that Ace was out somewhere, I made a change of clothes more suited for snow. When I was done, I made my way to the store which had Lucci's present. After I bought the present, which I thought was a really nice present, I found myself at the park and plopped down on a bench. Checking the time on my phone, I was ten minutes early. Wow, good time. For once I didn't make Lucci wait. I was happy.

I swayed my feet back and forth and Lucci's present moved its container a bit. Poor thing, it must be so cold. I had a cloth over it, so Lucci wouldn't know what it was. Although it was kind of obvious, due to the shape of the cage. I pet the cage and it calmed down. I saw a couple walk past and I grinned in a friendly way to them. They both smiled and continued on their way. The woman walked a bit closer to the man after that. I wanted a way to entertain myself, since I had some time to myself. I saw a girl with long pink hair walking, listening to her iPod with headphones and I waved to her, but she didn't see me. Her bangs covered her eyes, well at this angle they did. She had some familiarity to her, but I shook it off.

In her place I saw Lucci heading here in proper attire for this weather. I grinned widely and waves to him. He nodded and continued his way to me. He looked at the present and raised an eyebrow.

"Is that for me?" he asked. I nodded.

"You might want to be gentle with it," I advised. He nodded and lifted the cloth. His eyes widened with surprise.

"How did-" I grinned at his response. Lucci removed the cloth completely to reveal a bird whiter than the snow and it cooed. We sat there in silence, me on the bench and him on the snow. A bunch of time passed before he spoke again. "Hattori," he stated.

"What?" I asked.

"That's what I want to name him. Hattori," he repeated. I smiled.

"He's all yours!" I exclaimed.

"Thank you." Lucci looked up to me. Before I could reply, I was given a hug by him. It was unexpected, but completely welcomed. I returned it.

"Whajagetme? Whajyagetme?" I eagerly asked, bouncing up and down after our hug ended. He handed me a small box. I 'oooed' at it. When I opened it, I saw a small golden necklace with a straw hat at the center made of solid gold with ruby in betted across the middle of the hat. It was so pretty. And it looked rather expensive. "I love it!" I declared before planting a small kiss on his cheek. "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Luffy," he kissed my forehead in return. I took out the necklace and tried to put it around my neck. Tried. He took my hands that were behind my neck and spoke, "Allow me." With that, he connected the ends of the gold chain together and when it relaxed against the back of my neck, I turned around. "It looks nice," he commented.

"Shishishishi… What do you want to do now?" I questioned.

"If I recall correctly, you wanted to see a movie," he said.

"Yep! But how about we visit your dorm instead?" I offered. "We could watch some Christmas special, and I want to see your dorm!"

"Alright, let's go." He led me by one hand and Hattori in the other.

"Actually," I looked up at him, "I think you should let Hattori out." He had doubt on his face. "Trust me," I assured him. Lucci listened to me and opened Hattori's cage. In an instant, Hattori flew out to take in his freedom. He circled us a bit before plopping on Lucci's shoulder. "He likes you!" I stated. Hattori ruffled his feathers and cooed in content as he perched on Lucci. I carried the cage and continued our journey to Lucci's dorm. We walked in silence, just happy with each other's company. At least, I hoped that's what it was. We passed by a tree and I could've sworn I saw a bit of green. I tilted my head to get a better look at the person there, but whoever it was disappeared after I blinked. Weird. I wondered who that was…

Unbeknownst to me, I bit of ice was ahead of me and I fell, but hand was still connected to Lucci's, so he tumbled after me. I landed hard on the ice, but luckily there was some snow to soften my fall. Lucci was on top of me as well. Hattori, surprised, flew away from Lucci sometime before he fell. The cage seemed okay, despite its landing.

"Ow…" I mumbled. Lucci was on top of me and pushed himself up. It struck me what type of position we were in. Lucci's legs straddled my hips and our faces were inches apart.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Somewhat," I murmured, rubbing the back of my head. He was about to get off me, but a leg kicked him in the chin and sent him flying away into some snow. "Lucci!" I called in worry. I looked and saw the pink haired girl from before.

"Are you alright?" she asked. I tilted my head in confusion before fuming.

"Why did you kick him?!" I screeched.

"He was assaulting you, was he not?" she took her headphones out of her ear buds. I noticed her purple eyes now and the anti-eyebrow below one of her eyes.

"He's my boyfriend! It was an accident!" I yelled at her. Who did she think she was, kicking Lucci like that?!

"That's what he wants you to believe!" she declared.

"Who are you?" I asked. Before this violent girl could answer, Lucci appeared behind her with a rather pissed-off look on his face.

"I hope you realize I'm not above fighting women," he coldly stated.

"Wanna go?" she huffed. Wait a minute… I stood up and got a better look at her. She looked so damn familiar! Then it dawned on me… it can't be…

"Jewelry Bonney?" I questioned. She turned to me.

"I don't remember telling you my name," she stated.

My face lit up in happiness. "Bonney!" She just tilted her head in confusion. "It's me, Luffy!" her eyes widened and I went tumbling into the snow with the surprise hug I received.

"Luffy!" she started to squeeze the life out of me. "It's been what, ten years?"

"C-Can't…" I tried to tell her the oxygen I had left wouldn't last much longer. She seemed to acknowledge my plea and let go. I took a deep breath, a much needed one.

"You know this woman?" Lucci asked me. I nodded.

"She was my best friend back in East Blue before I moved here!" I told him.

"I see," he said.

"How've you been?" I asked, turning to Bonney.

"Great! I completely forgot you moved here, but it's great I saw you!" she smiled. "By the way, do you still," she stopped and turned to Lucci. She returned her gaze to me and leaned in close to my ear and whispered, "like- _like_  your brother?" She said it in a tone in which only the two of us could here.

"Kinda," I whispered back. Bonney was the first and only person in the world who knew I loved Ace more than a brother. I'm glad she kept it a secret all this time. Bonney seemed okay with the fact that I loved my brother that way. I was so glad she understood when I first told her. She nodded in response.

"So you are...?" She looked to Lucci, awaiting an answer.

"Rob Lucci," he spoke.

"Okay, I'm Jewelry Bonney," she introduced herself.

"Pleasure to meet you, although I could've done without the kick to the jaw," he said. Bonney just laughed nervously.

"Heheheh… Sorry about that."

Bonney told me she would be attending my school next week, and we gave each other our phone numbers and such. We said our goodbyes and Lucci, Hattori, and I headed to his dorm. When we arrived, we just watched 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas.' I always loved that book. After it was over, I just was lying on Lucci's body, using his chest as a pillow and he stroked my hair. It was comforting.

"Did you like your present?" he asked.

"Yep. I loved it!" I grinned.

"I'm glad you do," he replied, still stroking my hair. I noticed how much we were different. He was rather cold and distant, but I was sweet and open. He loved books, I loved video games. Lucci was silent, I was loud. We were practically opposites. But, opposites attract, I guess. I was so happy with Lucci.

"Lucci," I began, gaining his attention.

"Yes?"

"We've been dating for some time now, four years, right?" I said.

"Three years, eight months, twenty-two days, to be exact."

"Wow, that's a long time, isn't it?" I shifted my head a bit, but he let me do so and when I was comfortable, he resumed petting my head.

"I would think so," was his response.

"And now that I've been with you for so long, I've come to a conclusion,"

"And that is?" he said.

I lifted my head up and moved my body upwards so we were now face-to-face. "I love you, Lucci!" I stated proudly. His forest eyes widened. I just smiled. "Do you love me?" I questioned him. He sat up, his hand on the curve of my spine.

"I do," he stated before kissing me. It was an innocent kiss, just lip to lip. Nothing naughty or anything. It felt perfect. I began to respond to it before I knew it. My eyes were closed. I shyly reacted to his movements. He didn't try to advance, knowing I was quite nervous already. I knew so well he was holding back. If he didn't, well, a lot of things would happen. It seemed like it was such a short kiss after we parted. I snuggled into his chest and he rested

his chin on my head.

"Mmm, what time is it?" I inquired.

"Ten o'clock," he responded. My eyes shot open.

"Shit!" I cursed. He seemed surprised at my use of profanity. "I'm so late!" I, regrettably, moved away from my boyfriend and collected my things.

"Do you wish for me to drive you?" he asked. I halted.

"Actually, that sounds great. Could you?" I pleaded. He nodded.

His Lexus RX got us to my house very quickly. "Thank you!" I said before giving him a peck on the lips. Hattori cooed as I did so. Before hearing a 'You're welcome' I dashed into my house-like apartment and got out my keys. I silently opened the door, while hearing Lucci drive away, and shut it back just as silent. I turned on the light then turned around and saw Ace with a disapproving look on his face. Uh oh.

"Where have you been?" he interrogated.

"O-Out…" I stuttered.

"I see, doing what?" He crossed his arms and awaited an answer.

"Stuff…" I managed to reply.

"Like?" he pushed further.

"You know, out with Usopp and Nami, and I, uh, lost track of time!" I said, pleased with my lie.

"Then could you explain why Zoro saw you with another man, who certainly wasn't Usopp, and why that man kissed you on the forehead?" He raised his eyebrow. Damn, I'm so screwed.

"Uh…" I was getting nervous; my mind drew a blank at any excuses I could come up with. I gave up. "Alright, I was on a date with my boyfriend, happy?" I stated.

Ace sighed, "Well I'm not really mad, but I want to know why you hid this from me."

"I was afraid you'd hate me," I murmured.

"Lu, I could never hate you!" he said, ruffling my hair. "It's just, a guy?" he said in disbelief.

"Is it that bad?" I squeaked.

"Not really, I mean I'm kinda gay too, but I never expected you'd settle down and have a boyfriend," he confirmed. "Alright, who is he? Does he treat you well? What's he like?"

"He's nice," I answered.

"What's his name?"

"Lucci," I replied. Ace's eyes bulged from their sockets as that seeped into his head.

"As in Rob Lucci?" he asked.

"Yep."

" _The_  Rob Lucci?" he repeated.

"There's another one?" I tilted my head. Ace pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Oh God, Oh Lord, Shit!" he cursed. "Of all the- God!" he continued to swear under his breath. "Luffy," he grasped my shoulders. "Listen to me, you need to break up with him." My eyes widened with shock.

"W-Why?" I said, appalled. Why would he want me to break up with Lucci? Had Lucci done something bad to Ace?

"Just break up with him!" Ace ordered.

"No!" I yelled. "Not without a good reason!"

"I know what kind of man he is! The moment he screws you, he's going to leave you!" Ace screamed at me. Had words hurt me so much? How dare he? How did he  **dare?**  It's one thing to yell at me, but when you insult Lucci, that crosses the line.

"The hell you do! You don't know a thing about him! He's nice, he's always there for me! Besides, he wasn't the one who abandoned me for three goddamned years!" I snapped at Ace. I definitely did not expect Ace to smack me across the face. It wasn't one of our comical hits, like when we fought over meat. No, this was a real, hard, slap. Ace and I were both shocked. I felt the sting of his hand upon my cheek. Ace looked at his hand as if it was the devil himself. Without a second thought, I bolted out the door and into the cold snow. I could hear Ace calling for me, telling me to stop. The hell I would.


	5. The Prophecy

I kept running as far as my legs would take me. I refused to stop. Not after what Ace, my  _brother,_ the one I trusted and loved most in the world just did. He didn't hesitate to follow instantly after me. I leapt down the stairs, bruising my leg in the process (it didn't matter, the snow softened it) and sprinted to the streets. Ace was calling for me, begging me to stop, and saying he was sorry. I just didn't believe him. I don't know why, I just couldn't believe him. I swung through cars, nearly getting run over. One of the cars blocked Ace, and I took that as my chance to get away from him. Despite it being so late at night, Loguetown was active just as it was in the daytime. I ran past the street, successfully making it to the other side of the road. Why did I cross the road? To get away from that fucking asshole I call my brother!

Okay, so that was lame… I try to cheer myself up sometimes when I'm down. Even cursing Ace's name didn't make me feel much better. I turned quickly and saw that he was no longer following me. That gave me relief. Above all, I needed to be away from him. I don't want to be slapped again. Not like how I was a few minutes ago. I just kept running.

Run.

Run.

Run.

That's all that went through my head. Who to turn to? I needed someone right now, anyone! Anyone but Ace. I hadn't realized I was halfway across the city by now. I inhaled, and then exhaled. I repeated this until I could regulate my breath again. How far had I run? I turned and saw a popular bar that went by the name 'Shakky's Rip-Off Bar' carved in the title. I knew where I was now. I'm in the Sabaody District. My speed scared me. Did I really run almost 3 miles? By car, it isn't that much, but by foot. I only run far when I really, I mean  **really** , want to get away or get to something. Okay, what now? The pain from the snow began to get to me, but I refused to acknowledge it. Not knowing what else to do, I walked to the side of the building. I wouldn't dare go inside. Aunt Shakky would be there. She was an old friend of my Grandfather's and always knew what to do. The problem is, the moment she spots me, she'll call Ace, and I knew she would. After walked far away from the bar, trying to retain as much heat as possible, I found a small, old building that no one would seem to care about. Good, no one would think to look for me here. Sighing, I laid my back against the side of the gray construction and slid down until my butt rested on the floor, passing through the snow.

God, I was an idiot. I left my coat at home. I recalled how angry Ace looked when he slapped me. He  _hated_  me at that moment, even if it was only for a second. I sighed, not knowing what to do. I was mesmerized by my breath that was now visible. I always thought that was cool. A small smile made its way to my lips. I purposely breathed again, harder to see more air particles freeze into mist. I blew on my hands, to keep them from turning blue. I looked at the snow that softly fell from the sky, without a care in the world. Lucky bastards. I blinked. There always was Lucci. He was always there for me. I could call him and tell him my situation- no! I can't involve him. Nami was right. I rely too much on him. I looked at the necklace I received from him earlier today. I smiled sweetly and gave it a small kiss. I could imagine him being here with me, hugging me to keep me warm. Comforting me with kind words. The smile faded as realization came to me. Deep down, I knew the real reason I didn't want to call him…

Fear. I was afraid that Lucci would hit me too. Just like Ace. Lucci was all I had left, so if he rejects me, I'd be all alone again…

It hurts. Everything does. My body from the cold, my cheek from the slap, my hands from some mild form of frostbite, my heart from being stomped on then thrown into a blender, everything was just… painful. Then, I remembered Father. What would he do in a situation like this? What would Papa do? He always knew what to do. I rubbed my arms. That's what you do when you're cold, right? I think I learned that the warmth came from friction, or something. It didn't matter.

I recalled something. I still needed presents for Nami, Usopp, Vivi… and Ace. Ignoring the bastard who moved to the bottom of my Christmas List, I needed three presents. Nami would always accept money, so I can get that to her via mail. Five-hundred, no, it's Christmas, I needed to be nice, seven-hundred fifty dollars should make her happy. For Usopp, hmm… tough one. He liked gadgets and sniping, so maybe something in that area. How about food? Nah, that's what I want. A book on sniping, yeah I could get that for him. And Vivi, what to get her? She's sweet and nice, so I have no idea what to get her… jewelry, maybe? Girls like that stuff right? I'll ask Bonney. Oh yeah I needed one for her, too! Well, tomorrow was the official day of school where we exchange presents. I guess I'll get their presents while I'm at Sabaody. I had some money on me, after all. Doing this made me temporarily forget my pain. I'm glad I was blessed with friends to make me forget my troubles. I brushed the snow off my shoulders and head and went on my 'adventure'.

Throughout the entire way, it constantly snowed. I had Usopp's book, Vivi's earrings with little ducks on it, since she had a pet duck. It was HUGE, and I mean  _huge._  It was so big, you could ride on its back. I forgot its name, though. What would Bonney want? Food actually wasn't out of the question when it came to her. I looked around the store I was currently in. It was the mall of Sabaody, which held nearly every store in existence. From GameStop to Coldwater Creek to Starbucks, every store was there. Food stores, game stores, TV stores, clothing stores, jewelry stores, I could go on all day. The mall was open 24-hours a day, so I was lucky to come across it. In the end, I got Bonney a green folded hat that had a fancy name: Furażerka. I had no freaking idea how to even  _pronounce_  that. Why did Mr. Z have a little dot above it? It didn't make sense. Just put Mr. Z there, he doesn't need a little dot. At least, I didn't think he did. Did he win a prize or something? Maybe that Z is special! Because the 'z' in prize didn't have a dot. I guess he didn't win anything. Wait, what?

In the end, I went back home and dropped my stuff off. Ace wasn't here, so at least I was warm and safe. He was out looking for me. Usually, I would feel guilty that he went all that way for me, but I didn't. The pain I had ignored for a good forty-five came back. I thought about what Ace did, and I realized I may have deserved that. I grabbed my coat and headed out. Maybe if Ace tells me he's sorry one more time, everything would be okay again. I didn't want to fight. After all, it was my own irresponsibility that I ran away. I'll find Ace and apologize to him too!

I searched everywhere… I mean, EVERYWHERE. I couldn't find Ace! I felt bad, he was probably tearing the town apart looking for me. I worried him so much, so now I felt guilty. "ACE!" I called, hoping he would hear me. I failed. He didn't answer. Not remembering what was in front of me, I accidently slamming into someone. I saw blonde hair and I thought that Bellamy bastard had found me! But this man's hair was long and wavy, not short and spikey. His crimson eyes locked onto my obsidian ones. "O-Oh," I stuttered. "I'm sorry!" I apologized.

I rambled on and on about how I was a klutz all the time, but his serious voice cut me off, "Monkey D. Luffy."

"Eh? You know me?" I asked while tilting my head.

"Not personally. Your future is by far the most interesting." Future? What about my future? "Follow me. I need to discuss a matter with you."

"W-What?" Who was this guy? How did he know my name?

"I grow impatient," he turned to me, not liking my hesitation. "Come." It had seemed he was tired of waiting because he grasped my hand and pulled me along the sidewalk, I stumbled a bit. Despite I was now following him, he did not let go of my hand. My gloved hand was tugged by his, but his gloves were made of a leather of some sore, as we made our way to a tree. I repeat, A TREE. He dragged me all this way for a tree? Wait, how come his hands weren't cold? The leather must be warm, I guess. But the fabric was so thin! Mine were freezing, even with gloves. Never mind that. Now, onto the tree issue. It was a fairly large tree with pink petals growing on it. That was a Sakura tree, right? Wait, don't those only grow in spring? I had no idea. Well, it was a nice tree that apparently, held significance to him. Again, who was this guy?

"It's a tree," I muttered. A tree, what was so great about it? He (finally) let go of my hand. "Why'd you bring me here?" I asked this mystery man. He stared at the tree for a good ten seconds before deciding to respond to me.

"Under this tree, a terrible occurrence will befall you." What's with all the fancy talk? Is he a gypsy or something? No, I thought gypsies were only women. "The reason I find your future so interesting is because of what I see in it."

"What happens in it?" I dumbly replied. Could he see the future? That's so cool!

He shuffled cards that appeared out of his sleeves (Was he good at poker or something if he could do that?) and drew a card. "An old friend will confront you," was he talking about Bonney? "And he will aid you in many important tasks," oh, so it was a guy… that limited my choices, "you will fall, but rise again." So, I would be down about something but get better about it? "And, the shadow of death will visit you." Oh, so I was going to die…

Death. Shadow. Fall. Rise. I. Going. To. Die. Then it hit me quite hard. "I'M GOING TO DIE?!" He seemed unfazed at my outburst.

"As does everyone else. Why should it bother you that I inform you about it?" He was silent. "Under this tree, an event will occur, one that will blind you from the tragedy that seeks you." Again with the fancy talk. Sheesh, can't he speak anything other than Shakespearese? He began to walk away.

"Oi," He listened and stopped, "What's your name?"

"I see it unnecessary to tell you so, as I highly doubt that we'll meet once more. But, if your curiosity is so aching, I will cease it." Now, he looked me directly in the eye, his hair as well as mine swayed with the wind in the moment. I tensed. This man really was interesting. "I am known by many names, but my birth name is Basil Hawkins." I blinked. Hawkins, was it? That's an awesome name! Hawkins turned and walked towards a random direction, which probably wasn't as random to me as it was to him.

"Thanks for everything, Hawkins!" I grinned and waved.

"One more thing," he began, still walking and not turning around, "watch the road." Eh? Watch the road? Before I could say anything else, a strong gust of wind and snow temporarily took my vision away, the meanies! When it returned, Hawkins was gone. He really was an interesting and mysterious guy. I wonder if I'll meet him again. He said we wouldn't, but I'd prove him wrong!

I felt sleepy. Uh oh, that meant narcolepsy… Everyone in my family has it, Ace, Grandpa, probably Papa as well… I had to find a place to sleep, fast, or else I'll fall asleep in the cold snow. I got lucky! I found a nice, sturdy bench underneath the 'meaningful' tree where I was going to have a tragic thing happen to me. Ah, well, I'll worry about it later. Now I need to sleep…

…

I must have slept a really long time because when I woke up, I had a big clump of snow on me. I scrunched my eyes and dusted the white substance off me. It was all powdery, not like ice. I was as cold as possible, so it didn't really bother me anymore. I yawned and stretched. My body jumped in reaction to a vibrating in my pocket. I realized it was my phone so I picked it up. Then I noticed the time on my phone. My eyes turned to dinner plates. I had missed breakfast, brunch, and lunch! And I had completely missed half my classes. Well, math, history and French were boring anyway…

I stood up… well, what now? I guess I wouldn't come up with many excuses, so I'll just be marked absent. I wonder if anyone other than Ace knows I'm gone. I feel selfish, he went in the snow to looks for me and I only made him worry. I did deserve that slap. I'm a horrible little brother. I just rested on the bench and looked in awe at the tiny particles of frozen water slowly descending… I sounded like that Hawkins guy now. Sometimes I get these 'smart whims' as Usopp puts it. I sound smart for about two minutes max, and then I go back to being a doofus again. I was startled when I heard someone call my name. I looked up and saw Nami, who looked very relieved.

"Nami!" I exclaimed. She ran to me, and she rested her hands on her knees, panting. She must've run for quite some time. Is she training for a marathon? That'd be so cool! It seemed that wasn't the case because she wasn't wearing workout clothes, but her school uniform with the bonus of a pink sweater. I swore she fastened her skirt up two inches before the waistline, to make it even shorter. Either that or the people who design skirts are perverts. Ah, I'm sidetracking, aren't I?

"Luffy! I'm so glad I found you! Why weren't you at school?" I was about to tell her, but she cut me off, "Never mind, that's not important right now. Did you hear?" she had a hint of despair and sadness in her voice.

"What?" I replied. She bit her lip. My eyebrows furrowed.

"No, I'm not so sure it's such a good idea to tell you," she hesitated with every word.

"Why, what happened?"

"I'm not sure of the details but," she paused to reconsider her choice of telling me, "Ace and Lucci broke into a fistfight. A really bad one." My heart stopped right there. Nevertheless, she continued. "It's going on as we speak."

"What… did you just say?" I struggled to find the strength to speak.


	6. Lucci vs. Ace

"I'm really sorry, I just found out myself. Nojiko told me." Nojiko was Nami's elder sister. She was nice and offered me oranges whenever she could. She had this habit of petting me on the head like I was a dog or something. She had a pale indigo hair color and dark green eyes. She went to the same college Ace did, but Lucci didn't. He went to a different one where he majored in Criminal Justice. "Apparently, Ace came barging in the college, Sabo tried to stop him," Sabo, another name I haven't heard in a while. He's Ace's best friend and like a second big brother to me. Only I'm not madly in love with him. I'm actually starting to question my feelings towards Ace. Do I still love him the way I've always had, like a boyfriend? Or just as a brother? I didn't know anymore and I didn't care right now. I'd work it out later.

She continued, "Ace was determined to get to Lucci, I don't know what they said to each other, but I think it was mainly about you." My heart hurt more with every word. They fought because of me. Because of my stupidity. I hate that they fought. I wanted it to stop. "What happened?" she asked. Calming myself down, I told her everything. I spoke of how our date was going so nice and I had mistakenly spotted Zoro. I told her how happy I was and how Ace found out about Lucci. I told her he slapped me. I told her I probably deserved it. Most of all, I told her how much pain I was in due to knowing that my two favorite person were now fighting.

Nami gave me a sympathetic look. "Here," she handed me her phone and sat down next to me at the same time. "My mom taught me how to hack into the school system, so you can watch how it started… I haven't watched it." Her mother worked in the army and Nami hasn't seen her in about three and a half years, I think. She was nice with a mischievous attitude, Miss Bell-mére was. I loved her awesome hair the most. She played it and I was able to see Lucci casually talking to Kaku. Then a man with long dark hair with thick queues and a Fu Manchu moustache came rushing in the line of the security cam's vision. It was hard to hear, so Nami turned the volume up to hear the conversation. I could hear it clearly now.

"Oi! Kitten!" What kind of nickname is that? It didn't really suit Lucci, but oh well. "There's an angry guy looking for you!" He probably meant Ace.

Lucci's eyes narrowed. "What does he look like?" he calmly stated. "Does he have a scar on his face? Under his eye?"

"No, he doesn't. As for what he looks like, um, sort of wavy hair, freckles, pissed-off look on his face-," I thought I saw Lucci looked somewhat relieved. He must have thought it was me who was angry at him.

"ROB LUCCI!" I heard Ace's voice drowned in raw fury. It shook me to the bone. He sounded like he wanted to  _murder_  Lucci. My boyfriend looked puzzled for a moment before realization struck him.

"Portgas D. Ace," he stated my brother's name. It sounded like he loathed Ace just as much as the other. Why do they hate each other so much? "What are you doing here?" His normal and emotionless face turned into a glare.

"Where's Luffy?" Ace demanded. "I know he went to you! Where is he?!" Ace screamed. This startled the onlookers and eventually formed a small crowd around them.

"What do you mean?" Lucci asked, not losing the glare. "I dropped him off at home and that was the last I saw of him."

"Don't give me that shit!" Ace yelled. "He ran out and didn't come home last night!" Ace left out the part where he slapped me on purpose. I know he did.

"How did you come to know we were dating?" Lucci asked. Ace was taken aback.

"Don't change the subject. Tell me where he is! His friend told me he didn't show up at school today!" Probably Usopp told him. Nami at the time was trying to find me, or otherwise she wouldn't have looked so worn out when she found me.

"I've no knowledge of his disappearance," Lucci admitted. "Tell me, why did he run away?" Ace kept avoiding that question. He finally settled on a muttering of an answer.

"I… lost my temper and," Ace closed his eyes in shame.

Lucci almost lost his cool at that point. "What… did you do to him?" he growled lowly. Ace just shook his head. Telling him would only make matters worse, I suppose. Lucci would react violently, I knew that. He wouldn't give a damn that Ace was my brother. He'd kick the crap out of anyone who hurt me, even if it's my family. He was like that when I told him of Grandpa's fist of love. He acted coldly towards my grandfather, even at the mere mention of him, long before they met in person. He shrouded his dislike with politeness and formality. Grandpa was somewhat okay with the fact that I was dating Lucci. The old man found out before Ace did (for some odd reason I was more comfortable about Lucci meeting him rather than Lucci meeting Ace). He didn't care that he was a boy, only that Lucci would treat me well. He even gave me a hard slap on the back in support, an unnecessarily hard slap. I was sure his hand was imprinted into my spine for the next two or three weeks.

"Since you don't know where he is, I want to know something," Ace regained his angry face. "Why are you with him? What's your goal?" My eyebrows furrowed together. Goal? What the? Why would Lucci have a goal?

"What are you getting at, Portgas?" Lucci questioned.

"He doesn't realize it, but I do. I know exactly who you are, Rob Lucci!" Ace declared. I saw a flicker in Lucci's eyes.

"I should assume that a man like as you would not bring up such a topic, but then I would be naïve, now wouldn't I?" Lucci never lost his glare at Ace.

"He doesn't even love you," Ace coldly said. I covered my mouth. How could he-?! Lucci glared even harder. If looks could kill, Ace would be dead ten times over now.

"I dare you to repeat that," Lucci challenged. No, stop it. That'll only lead to fighting. Don't fight. Please don't. I love the both of you, why don't you see that?

"Deep down, he knows you're only using him. I refuse to let you do that to my brother!" Ace said with determination.

"You're crossing the line, Portgas," Lucci warned. He slipped his book bag off his shoulder and handed it to Kaku, who unwillingly accepted it. No. No fighting.

"Both of you, just quit it!" Sabo pleaded. "Ace, let's go back." He put a hand on Ace's shoulder, but Ace jerked away from him.

"Back to my earlier question, why are you with him?" Ace pushed further. "I'm well aware you're not doing it for love. I don't even think you could, even if you tried." I've seen Ace like this before. When it has to do with family, he gets cruel. Really, really cruel. A guy named Teach was threatening me harshly, to the point where I curled up in a ball and was too afraid to leave my room, because of a dumb grudge against Papa, and Ace got pissed. The next time I saw Teach, he was in the paper, a colorized photo of him very badly beaten and in the hospital on the cover. He couldn't press charges against Ace, due to lack of evidence (Ace probably had Whitebeard's protection as well). Every time I would see him accidently, like at the grocery store, all Ace had to do was put a protective arm around me, and Teach would run like a professional sprinter.

"Oi, kitten!" the dark-haired man tried to get Lucci's attention. "Even I know you if you fight, its bad news! You hurt him, you hurt Whitebeard! Do you want yourself in such a situation?" Lucci ignored him completely.

"It'd be better for Luffy if you broke up with him," Ace said. Why? Why does Ace not like me being with Lucci? Does he not like my happiness?

"The day he tells me he doesn't love me, I'll do so. But, until that day… I refuse," Lucci smirked. "He seems to be happy with me, anyways," Lucci stated in an as-a-matter-of-factly tone. "Is his happiness no longer important to you? You get tired of it, and don't care? Isn't that how things work in your family, Gol D. Ace?" Ace flinched noticeably.

"What did you call me?" Ace's voice scared even me now. I saw Nami tense up at his actions from the corner of my eye.

"By your birth name. What I'm describing is nothing short of what happened that day." Lucci had an evil smirk. He knew he was winning the battle. I didn't want a battle in the first place. "Shall I reveal to everyone what happened? How the great Gol D. Roger-"

"Stop it," Ace murmured.

"Brutally betrayed-"

"I said stop it," Ace said it a bit louder now.

"Monkey D. Dragon-"

"Stop it!" Ace yelled.

"Because he was an inconvenience? I don't trust someone with your bloodline to be in the same room with Luffy," Lucci scowled.

"Ace, what's he talking about?" Sabo questioned my brother.

"That man is not my father!" Ace screamed, shocking the crowd, but not Lucci.

"When your brother is an inconvenience," Ace's eyes widened in horror, "will you do the same, I wonder?" Ace lost it. He ran up and punched Lucci square in the face.

Lucci staggered back a bit, holding his bruised nose. It bled a bit. No. Don't. I wanted to scream at them to stop it. Lucci grabbed Ace's wrist, the back of his collar with his other hand, and body slammed Ace into the wall. The fight began. They were kicking punching, yelling, trying to murder each other. Ace tried to aim for Lucci's head with a kick, but Lucci blocked it with his forearm. The crowd was cheering them on. I didn't want this. Why were they doing this? It was my fault.

It was brutal, but they were even in battle. At times Ace got the upper hand, others Lucci did. Sabo urged them to stop, as did Kaku and that other man. Listen to them, Lucci, Ace. Stop fighting. Please.

"And it goes on like that to the present time," Nami stated. I bit my lip. All the pain I had held up in me all this time was threatening to break out.

"Nami…" I muttered, gaining her attention. "I know I'm supposed to be strong, but…" I sniffed, trying so hard to keep it all in. "Can I cry in front of you?" I asked pathetically. Nami paused the video on her phone and set it on the bench.

Nami gave me a soft smile. "Come here," she wrapped her arm around me and pulled me into her shoulder. I couldn't hold it anymore. I began to sob. "Just let it all out," she whispered. I did. I cried more than I ever did in my life. The only other time I cried this much was when Papa died. Nami brushed my hair and let me drench her shoulder with my tears. She gave me comfort and soothed me while I helplessly lay in her arms. I hated being like this. I felt so weak. If we were boyfriend and girlfriend, this would be considered a major role-reversal. "Luffy," she said after some time.

"Y-Yeah?" I didn't mean to stutter.

"I'm going to fix this," she told me. She stood up, handed me her phone, but fasted the video forward, so it was at present time, played it, and walked away. Before she was out of earshot, she flashed me a grin and a thumps up. "You can count on me! Just keep watching that!" I gave a sad smile and nodded, trusting my friend.

I looked down to see Ace and Lucci still at it. They both refused to back down. Now, they were both beaten up badly. Lucci had a split lip and a bloody nose, with a bruised cheek. Ace had a bleeding forehead and bloody knuckles. They both had dirt and scruff on them, clear evidence of fighting. I hated this. They did that to each other. I bit my lip to keep myself from crying again. Nami would fix everything, right? I know she would. She's reliable.

It took torturous waiting and watching of my two favorite people beating each other up, but Nami finally appeared on the screen once more. I turned up the volume to maximum to hear her voice. "Oh, Nami!" Sabo exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Never mind that," Nami changed the subject quickly, "do you have something hard, like a textbook?" she asked. A textbook? Wha…? What good is a textbook going to do? Is she going to lecture Lucci and Ace to make them stop fighting? No, Nami's the violent type. She'd rather smack them to the other world.

"Um, we're reading  _Hamlet_  as our literature book for my major, but I don't see how—" Nami cut him off.

"Thanks!" Without permission, she tore his book bag off him and violated it thoroughly until she found a hard cover copy of 'Hamlet'. I never understood Shakespeare. Even his name made no sense. It sounded like 'shake sphere'. What kind of name it that? Was someone shaking a sphere? Oh! Like those little baby rattles! Maybe his was just a sphere so his parent's named him that! No, that wasn't his first name, but oh well, I like my logic. Nami then stole a bat that was randomly there (or was it fate?) and heaved poor 'Hamlet' in the air. Uh oh. Nami's on the softball team, hell, she's the captain! Getting a good swing, she rammed the bat against the book, causing the book to smash into the wall and die. Poor book. I hope Nami pays for its funeral.

Sabo had a look of horror on his face. I wouldn't blame him. He just witnessed a murder of one of his favorite authors. Sabo majored in English and took a course of British Literature, so he must've been devastated. "MY SHAKESPEARE!" he yelled in agony. Luckily, the loud banging of the book drew Ace's and Lucci's attention away from each other for the time being.

"Now, before I knock you two out, do you have any idea how your guys' fighting is affecting the person you're fighting about?" Nami demanded.

"What do you mean?" Ace's eyebrows furrowed.

"I found Luffy," was all Nami had to say before she was thrown a sea of questions. Where is he? How is he? He's not hurt, right? Tell me where he is! Nami got irritated; I could see the tick mark on her head. "SHUT UP!" That silenced them. "After I told him that you two were fighting, he cried! How does that feel?! Both of you made Luffy cry!" she screamed. The accused had their heads down in shame. "I hope you get this through your thick skulls, if anything else: Get along! I know you two hate each other, but…" she trailed off before continuing again. "Do it for Luffy! If you had seen the expression he had on, you'd do it in a heartbeat!" she declared. "This is the second time in my life I've seen him cry. Ace," said man turned to her, "You know the first time, when Dragon died." Ace weakly nodded. "If you two can't learn to get along, then I will  _personally_  make sure neither of you two come near him again. Am I clear?"

"Why go to such extents?" Sabo asked, still mourning over Shakespeare.

"He's a good guy. A smile suits him best," Nami playfully winked. This made me have a soft smile upon my face.

"I'll…" Ace finally spoke and turned to Lucci. "Try… very, very hard to get along with you," he looked like he was about to vomit. Lucci just glared at him.

"Well?" Nami said, getting impatient.

Lucci sighed. "In the event that Luffy is not parted from me, I will also agree to not kill Portgas on sight," he growled. I was so happy! Things were going for the better!

"Good, because he's been watching the entire thing!" Nami laughed.

"What?!" Ace yelled simultaneously with Lucci. Nami jerked her thumb to the camera. Man, their faces of dumbstruckness were hilarious! Wait, is dumbstruckeness a word? No, I don't think so. Oh well…

"Everything?" Ace squeaked. God he sounded like a little kid who just got caught scribbling on the wall.

"Everything!" Nami stuck her tongue out and gave him a peace sign. Ace looked mortified. "I'll call him right now so you two can personally apologize to him!" she commanded. Nami should be a general when she grows up, because they shout orders and everyone follows them. Just like when Nami yells at us! "Oh, shoot!" she exclaimed. "I left my phone with him! Lend me yours." Without further permission, she assaulted Sabo's bag again and pulled out his iPhone.

"At least ask before going through my stuff!" Sabo yelled comically at her. Nami ignored him completely.

"Tis a free country, my dear Sabo," she teased in an 'I'm-so-proper-I-should-force-my-ideals-down-others'-throats' kinda way.

"Apparently, you've never heard of the fourth amendment," Sabo retorted with a snort. Nami just shrugged. She dialed my number, because I heard my phone ringing. I answered is and –gasp- it was Nami! How'd she do that?! She must be a wizard or something.

"Hello?" I asked and I heard myself on the screen. That was just beyond cool.

"Hey, Lu!" Nami purposely called my by the name Ace gave me probably to piss off my brother. "I told you I'd solve this! I've rounded up the two idiots and they're ready to apologize." Rounded up, like horses in old fashioned cowboy movies? I didn't see any rope. Nami doesn't make sense sometimes. I turned Nami's phone off and stuffed it into my pocket (I'll return it to her later). I stood up and began to head for Lucci's college, where I'll make up with them there. Nami handed Ace the phone.

"Hey, you there?" he asked. I smiled at the worried tone of his.

"Yeah," I replied.

"Listen, I'm sorry… about everything. I didn't mean to hit you and yell at you—" He was cut off my Lucci's roaring voice.

"You. Did. What." I could hear Nami threatening him not to fight, so he calmed down.

"And, I mean you deserve better," my heart fluttered at Ace's words.

"I'm sorry for running out, Ace! I was just so… anyways I want to apologize to Ace!" I said quickly in response. I could imagine the surprise on his face. I sometimes refer to people in the third person for some odd reason. Ace told me once he found it cute.

"You didn't do anything wrong," Ace reassured me. "It was my own fault. I love you, idiot little brother," I felt like swaying in happiness at that.

"Me, too!" I beamed. I heard some shuffling and then Lucci's sexy voice.

"Luffy?" he called. I responded. "I understand that my actions were upsetting and," I cut him off.

"I forgive you!" I grinned. I could feel his pleasant smile on the phone. Not a smirk, but a true smile. I loved his smile, but he needs to do it more often. I've been trying to get Zoro to smile for five whole minutes all throughout high school. I managed to get it for about an average of three minutes at the most.

"You never cease to amaze me," he replied. I was walking down the street and I had to make a cross over the street before I could head straight for the college.

"Well I—" I stopped when I heard a car honking. I turned to my left and saw bright lights before I felt an explosion of pain on my side and landed harshly on the ground. My cellphone clattered to the ground and I heard tires squealing and Lucci's worried voice. A car door opened and I heard heels on the pavement before a murderous scream. A woman screamed. No, rather a girl. A serious of 'oh my gods' followed shortly.

"Luffy?" I heard Lucci. I couldn't move. It hurt so much. I couldn't feel my left leg anymore. "Luffy, are you alright? Answer me!" My eyes were forced open from the shock and pain. Someone lifted me up bridal style. The hold was weak, so the person didn't have good upper body strength. The person set me down softly into their limo, car, whatever the hell it was. The person sat down, closed the door, made some orders, and I could feel the car moving. I was still alive, but I wasn't sure for how long. The person was begging me not to die. I thought I saw a bright light. In that bright light, I saw my life passing before my eyes. Then I saw two figures, one holding their arms out to me. One word came to mind…  _'Mom?'_  That was all I thought before consciousness left me.


	7. Attempted Assassination

I couldn't hear the voices around me. They were such a blur. A hoard of voices scrunched together to make listening difficult. What the hell happened to me? I could breathe, I knew that. So I'm not dead, right? Maybe I am… but dead people don't have to breathe, I saw that on a horror movie once. The zombies didn't have to breathe, so they slumped into the water to chase after the main character, still walking. They did a similar thing in the first Pirates of the Caribbean, I think. Where all the dead people walk underwater. God, that was cool! Back to my situation, I struggled very hard to open my eyes. Why weren't they listening to me? Open, dammit! I succeeded |Victory!| and suddenly wanted to close them again due to the very bright light above me.

Why were doctors' rooms so white? It reflects the light and blinds the patient. Such as now. They aren't that logical, in my opinion. "He's coming to!" I heard. It was a female voice, no doubt about it. I regained my vision and did a scanning of my surroundings. Okay, I was in a white room, still illogical, and there was someone beside me. "Luffy!" the same voice shouted in delight. I know that voice from somewhere. I turned and I saw Vivi. "Are you feeling well?"

"I guess…" No, I just got run over by a car, I'm perfectly fine. Why do people ask if you're okay when they know the damage you took? It's rather stupid, if you ask me. But I'm a considerate person, so I answer nicely.

"You won't be able to walk for a while." I'm glad she said it to me straight up. I hate it when people beat around the bush, it's pointless. I'm a blunt person, why couldn't other people be too?

"What happened? Where am I?" She hesitated for a moment before looking at me with pity. Pity. I hated being looked at like that. It's like people believe I'm not strong enough or smart enough to do something. It just bugs me. So many people looked at me that way at Papa's funeral. I thought I told Vivi that it ticks me off when people look at me that way.

"You're at my house, the governor's house," she smiled. Wait–… what?! As it turns out, she was right, I couldn't walk. I tried to stand up, but my leg lost balance and I fell over. Vivi quickly helped me up and lead me to a wheelchair. She set up my left leg, which was now in a cast, on the holder thingy in the front of the wheelchair so I didn't have to put any weight on it. "I –um… ran you over with my car…" she said while laughing nervously.

"Why?" I asked.

"It was an accident!" she quickly assured. "I'm so very sorry!" My friend bowed repeatedly in apology. I laughed it off.

"Don't worry about it!" I chuckled. She looked at me in shock. "If it was an accident, it was an accident. It's not like you're trying to kill me, right?" Vivi covered her mouth and quickly looked away as she began to cry. "Oi, what's wrong?" Why'd she start to cry? Was it something I said? I don't understand girls. Zoro was right, they  _are_  complicated. I was struck with shock by the sudden hug she gave me. What's gotten into her? She whispered thank you a bazillion times in my ear. The governor's daughter then rolled me out of the infirmary |That's what I presumed

it was| and to outside.

The sun was too bright! It burned my eyes a bit. Vivi tapped my shoulder and I looked up to her. "Here," she handed me a phone. "I bought you a new one, but don't worry! It has the old contacts and everything! I sort of… ran over your old phone…" She bowed once again in apology. I looked and saw I have to scroll down with the number of missed calls I had. They were all from my friends. Lucci, Ace, Sabo, Zoro, Usopp and even Sanji all were listed. I still had Nami's phone, so it was obvious why she didn't call me. I had another call coming, so I answered it.

"Hello?" I asked as if nothing had happened at all. I got a scream of a reply, courtesy of Sanji. I had to tear my ear away from the phone. Man, he's loud!

"HELLO? WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN, 'HELLO'?! YOU BASTARD! EVERYONE'S BEEN SEARCHING EVERY ROCK, PEBBLE, AND ATOM IN THIS GODDAMN CITY FOR YOU! WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?!" Vivi's face turned white at Sanji's language. She could hear the conversation even without it on speakerphone.

"Unconscious?" I said, taking a guess. Really, where else would I be?

"MY SWEET NAMI'S BEEN WORRIED SICK ABOUT YOU! THE IDIOTS, TOO!" he yelled. I could tell he meant all the guys. Sanji did not get along with boys well, Zoro especially. They fight almost every time they see each other.

His attitude towards women is a complete 180 degree from how he treats men. He always gets nosebleeds when he sees cleavage, and he pampers them like they're princesses or something. I once stole food from him, which was intended for Nami, and he kicked the crap out of me. Lucci wasn't very pleased with that. Oh, I almost forgot to mention! Sanji is the BEST cook in the world. He actually cooks nearly all of the meals at the Baratie, both day and night! The only reason he agreed to work at the night Baratie was because he thought he'd get to see 'beautiful ladies~' as he put it. When more guys came to the restaurant, he was bummed out for a while. He's over it now. I think.

"I'm at Vivi's house!" I told him. Another scream of a reply from him…

"HOW DARE YOU BOTHER MY SWEET VIVI WITH YOUR IDIOCY?! YOU CAN'T JUST LOUNGE AROUND WHILE WE'RE ALL WORRYING! YOU SHITHEAD!" Eh, I've been called worse. Sanji's loud.

"Oi! It wasn't my fault!" I defended myself. I mean, who would want to be hit by a car? "Vivi accidentally ran over me with her car and—" I heard the phone being switched around and heard a new voice.

"She did  _what_?!" Zoro screamed. I also heard Sanji yelling at him to give his phone back, a few 'shitty marimos' and a bunch of fighting. Typical Zoro and Sanji. The phone was picked up again and Ace spoke.

"Alright, as you've heard, we've all been worried sick about you," he said in a tone that I hated. It was the 'I'm not mad, just disappointed' tone of voice. It made me feel so guilty! Curse Ace for using that tone! "Care to explain what happened?" he demanded. I felt like I was in a whole bunch of trouble.

"I was walking and Vivi sort of… ran me over," I said awkwardly. Vivi, once again, bowed. I silently told her not to worry about it in body language. They should have a course in that. Mmm…, courses meant food. I want food right now… "I'm hungry…" I mumbled. I heard Ace groaning over the phone.

"When are you not?" I tried to think of a time, but nothing came to mind. Oh, thinking is hard! I'm getting a fever. I immediately stopped, due to the fact that it's bad for my health. Yes, I've concluded that thinking can be bad for you. At least, it is for me. "So you're at her house?"

"Un!" That was my way of saying 'yes'.

"Are you okay?" I answered again with a positive response. Ace asked if I had any injuries, and I told him my leg was broken and I was in a wheelchair. He mumbled something along the lines of 'okay, my ass'.

"Oh! Vivi-girl!" I heard a voice. I looked and saw the strangest thing in the world. Okay, I think it was a guy. But at the same time it looked like a woman. It was a person… okay let me describe actually what I saw. The… person looked like they were a stripper or something. They were dressing in hot pink, revealing the entire torso and a skull tattoo of some sort. The person had a big head, I mean BIG head. I don't know if it was his/her giant curls of purple hair, or just the actual size of it, but it was a huge head. She/he was wearing the most makeup I've ever seen on a face. I don't even think Nami wears that much on a fancy occasion. The figure had fishnet leggings with boots that matched whatever he was wearing. I think it's a guy.

"Ah! Mr. Ivankov!" my friend exclaimed with glee. Ivankov? Where have I heard that name before?

"Who's that?" he looked at me. Vivi addressed him as 'Mr.' so I know he's a dude now.

"Oh, this is my friend, Monkey D. Luffy," Vivi introduced me. "Luffy," she looked to me and gestured to the Okama in front of me, "this is Emporio Ivankov." The man stared at me for a good twenty seconds before dropping his mouth to the floor.

"V-V-Vou're father, what was his name?!" he demanded. I looked at him oddly. Why would he care who Papa was?

"Dragon," I replied. His mouth, if possible, dropped even further. He's a weird fellow, even I could tell that.

"Vou're Dragon's boy?!" he shouted in shock. I nodded. That's what I just said, right? Geez, he needs to pay attention. "Oh, what news this is!" he rushed over to me and held my hand. Okay, now I felt really awkward. Who was this guy? "Vi never imagined Vi would get to meet you!" he had an odd accent.

"Eh? You know me?" I tilted my head slightly. I never noticed this was the exact same question I asked Hawkins.

"Heehaw!" the man exclaimed. "What a ridiculous question! Vi am a close subordinate of vour father!" I noted the 'am' in that sentence instead of 'was'. That meant he was still loyal to Papa. "Straw Hat-boy! Since you are Dragon's boy, I will be your ally whenever you need it! Heehaw!" he Ivankov declared. Where'd he get the Straw Hat-boy from?

"Straw Hat-boy?" I wondered aloud.

"Vour necklace," he explained. "And I have a feeling you would look rather good in a straw hat, Straw Hat-boy!" Okay… I don't understand this guy at all. Oh, whatever.

"Thanks, Ivan-chan!" I grinned. Vivi and he walked away, probably talking about politics and whatnot. It didn't interest me. Maybe I should talk to Ace some more… Ah! I accidentally hung up!

Months later, my leg finally healed and I had to go through the trouble of explaining my job to Ace. Oh boy, that was a hell of a lecture. Lucci stepped in to defend me, but that made it worse. Ace and Lucci still hate each other, but they've narrowed their fights down to only two to three times a day! Their fights are rather comical and part of their standard routine nowadays. Everyone's gotten used to it, just like Zoro and Sanji fighting. Now, I was currently at Lucci's dorm |I still haven't met his roommate yet. I always thought it was Kaku, but I never see him around here.| lying on his back, facing the ceiling, while he worked on some essay due in two months. He has a habit of getting things done early. Me? I'm a procrastinator. I like to put off things until the day before it's due. Ace has scolded me many times about it, but I've never gotten out of the habit. I sighed every now and then due to extreme boredom.

"Whatcha working on?" I asked him. Lucci replied, but never stopped writing. He's supporting my weight, talking to me and writing at the same time! That's what I call multitasking.

"I have to write a summary of the history of a chosen prison. I've chosen Pentonville Prison."

"Why not Impel Down?" That was one of the well-known prisons. In fact, it was the greatest one out there. Not one person has escaped from there. Shanks has sent people to investigate that place because Impel Down is one of the three branches of Cipher Pol, one of our greatest enemies. The other two branches are Enies Lobby and Marineford. All three have skilled people in it, trained for assassination. I heard from Zoro that the people in Enies Lobby are complete monsters. I hope I don't have to go up against them anytime soon. Oh yeah! Zoro is also a member of the Akagami family. He's usually partnered up with me at my request, and we work really well together. Yeah, Zoro was the one who was always there for me… I haven't talked to him that much recently. I mean, he did cause the fight between Ace and Lucci by telling Ace about us in the first place.

"Most likely everyone else would be doing that," Lucci replied, pulling me from my thoughts.

"That so?" I said in an aloof tone. He paused his writing for a moment.

"Something on your mind?" I took a while to answer. I couldn't really tell Lucci that I was a member of the Akagami family and that I've been lying to him for the past four years. He shifted his shoulders a bit, his long hair tickling my neck.

"Nothing much." My eyes blinked slowly, about four or five times, before I spoke again. "Say, what type of job do you want when you're out of college?"

"I'll most likely head into obtaining a master's degree and become a policeman."

"Haaa..." I slurred.

"Is there something wrong with that?" he interrogated. See, he's doing a good job already! He'll be a good interrogator someday.

"No… it's just…" I tried to find the right words for this. "You seem like you could do more, like be a secret agent or a spy…" He stopped writing again.

"Why would you think I'd be capable of something like that?" I struggled to find an answer. Why did I think that?

"You're a tough guy. It just seems to suit you more." I lifted my head and put my hands underneath it. I interlocked my fingers and relaxed on my boyfriend's back.

"Sorry, but I have no interest in such a job choice."

"Why not?" I asked. He looked somewhat uncomfortable with this topic, like he regretted something.

"Doing something like that requires a person to sever all their bonds, and the ones they make on missions. It's an empty existence." Lucci was sure in his words. I never thought about it that way.

"I still think it'd be a cool job," I grinned. "You get to see the world, and the people who are spies with you are your friends, right? You get all these gadgets and stuff!"

"That's not necessarily the case all the time. Even your co-workers can…" he trailed off.

"What is it?" Lucci seemed tense.

"Nothing," he stated. Once again, it felt like the time I found his medical form. It felt like he was hiding something. Something big.

"If you say so," I dropped the subject. I don't want him being uncomfortable. "Say… I'm bored!" I declared, stretching out like a cat. Lucci didn't seem to mind.

"And?" he said, uncaring. Meanie!

"Let's do something fun!" I wished. He set his pen down and put his notebook away. I was confused for a moment. In an instant, he was facing me and on top of me, successfully trapping me. His hand cupped my face and his thumb rolled around my scar. He gave me a devilish grin.

"Define 'fun'," he purred. It took me a while to understand what he was getting at. My face turned slightly red. Okay, mega-red. He leaned down and kissed me. Lucci slowly, agonizingly slow, pried my lips open with his tongue. My boyfriend nibbled on my lip and licked my lips. I parted my mouth, realizing what he wanted. I made a sound of shock at his tongue invading my mouth. This was all new to me. We haven't gotten that far physically due to me being flat-out chicken. Lucci was patient, though. His wet, wet tongue tangled with mine and I moaned. His right arm circled my waist and he pulled me closer to him. I responded my embracing his shoulders and tugging him nearer. I felt air leaving me and the world felt fuzzy. I whined at the loss of precious oxygen. Lucci acknowledged this and left my mouth. Nevertheless, he was still centimeters from my face. I panted, looking directly into his eyes.

"L-Lucci… I-," I gasped out.

"I love you," he finished for me. Hearing those words made my heart nearly explode in happiness. Lucci froze for some reason. Those forest orbs of his narrowed, but then widened. "Get down!" he commanded. He held me close so that my face was buried in his chest, and rolled to the side, avoiding  _something_. I heard the window crash and the light above us completely shattered. I was scared that the glass would stab Lucci, but he just embraced me tighter. My eyes were squeezed shut. He covered me with his body so I wouldn't get hurt. Even after all the glass landed, he didn't let go of me. Another crash through the window. I recognized the sound they made. I would never forget that sound. Shanks deeply imbedded that sound into my brain so I could protect myself.

"Are those bullets?" I squeaked.

"Yeah," my boyfriend replied. We remained in that position for God knows how long, and after hearing no more bullets, Lucci let go of me. The moment he stood up, another shot grazed his cheek.

"Lucci!" I shouted in worry. I sat up quickly to help him.

"Stay down!" he ordered. He sounded angry. No, furious. He sounded furious, seething with rage. Was it directed at me? I followed his command. Lucci looked like he was going to reach for something, but he stopped. The hand belonging to him retracted. He ducked and moved to the wall in between two windows, one which was the broken one. His muscular frame was back to the wall. I heard running footsteps, and then Kaku hastily opening the door.

"Oi, are you guys-" He paused. "What happened?" He walked to the center of the room and picked up what looked like a letter.

"Duck!" Lucci instructed. Kaku just gave him an odd look. "We don't know if they're gone yet!" he informed. Kaku hastily nodded, ducked down and grazed something hidden in his back pocket, but Lucci shook his head.

"Who did this?" Kaku demanded.

"I don't know," Lucci stated. "Call the police." Kaku did as he was told. I heard another shot and it nearly hit me. I began to shake and clutched my arm. The bullet hit the bed, but it was so close to hitting my arm. Whoever's doing this is no pushover.

"Luffy!" Kaku called in worry. Apparently, the call had ended. I remember being shot once. Never again. It hurt so damn bad. Back when Papa was still alive, pursuers had found our home and opened fire. Ace was with Uncle Roger due to the divorce agreements. That's where I got my scar. The bullet itself cut my cheek with the very force of it. If my head had been a little more to the right… I gave up hope of being able to blink again; my eyes were so wide right now. "What's wrong?" Kaku whispered.

"He nearly got shot!" Lucci spoke sternly through his teeth.

"We should leave the room," I finally found my voice. Both men in front of me nodded. We made our way out and shut the door. Kaku let out a huge sigh of relief. The three of us slumped against the hallway walls. I slid all the way down, as did my square-nosed friend.

"What was that all about?" he asked rhetorically.

"Who knows?" Lucci said. "Luffy? Are you okay?" he turned to me and I gave him a reassuring smile.

"You? You're cheek, it-," Lucci cut me off.

"It's nothing."

"Oh that's right!" Kaku called out. Lucci and I turned to him "That note I picked up earlier!" He dug his hand through his pocket and pulled out a crumpled up piece of paper. "Was it there before?"

"No… it wasn't." Lucci had an uneasy expression. He took the paper and opened it up. Kaku read over his shoulder.

"Your betrayal cannot be overlooked anymore. We'll kill you first and then go for Kaku. You still have a choice." Kaku read it all aloud. "Who is this from?" he nearly shouted.

"I don't know," Lucci looked just as puzzled as Kaku was. "But whoever it is, they're targeting Luffy." I stiffened. Lucci and Kaku looked to me. I gulped.

A few days later, the police were taking care of the whole shooting incident, and Ace was currently in overprotection mode. He's worse than a mother hen! He refused to let me go out alone anywhere, except the bathroom, and he even stated he would have Whitebeard protect me. He had two people follow me wherever I go no matter what I do. That's what I call going overboard. So I was being targeted, it could be worse! I managed to ditch the two guys |I referred to them as personal stalkers| and was walking down the street casually. Unexpectedly, I ran into Zoro along the way.

"Hey, I heard what happened," he told me. I still felt awkward talking to him.

"Y-Yeah… shooting…" Zoro noticed my discomfort.

"Listen, I'm sorry about telling Ace about you and Lucci," he sighed. How'd he know that's what I was upset about? He's psychic!

"It's fine…" I mumbled.

"But," I looked to him, "I want you to be careful around that guy." Did he mean Lucci?

"Why?" Zoro put his hands on my shoulders.

"Listen to me," he told me. I nodded. "Have you ever heard of CP9?" My eyebrows furrowed.

"No, I haven't," I stated. "What is it?"

"It's-" he stopped and looked past me, having a cautious look on his face. I turned and saw Lucci.

"Oh, Lucci!" I exclaimed in delight. I haven't seen him for a while, due to reporters and stuff. I noticed the bandage over his cheek. I frowned. That was from the bullet. Zoro growled lowly and walked away. "Zoro! Your house is the other way!" I informed. Zoro stopped immediately and turned around, passing me and Lucci.

"Try anything to hurt him, pray to God for mercy, because I won't have any on you," Zoro hissed.

"I'll keep that in mind," Lucci replied, losing emotion. Zoro huffed and walked away.

"What was that all about?" I questioned him. My boyfriend just shrugged. "So, what's new?" I smiled. Lucci returned it.

"Nothing much, has anyone tried to hurt you?" he said with seriousness.

"No, Ace is protecting me. A bit too much if you ask me," I sighed, explaining my situation. Lucci was about to say something, but a phone vibration cut him off. He looked down at his phone and had a stern look on his face.

"I have to go," he informed. My expression went a bit sad. He walked to me and hugged me. "It isn't forever. I'll be back." Lucci tilted my chin up and gave me a kiss. It was an innocent one, and we were relaxed together until a voice interrupted us.

"Oi! PDA much?!" We broke our kiss and turned to Eustass Kid sitting on a bench. "I've nothing against gays, but I'd rather you not break into a fuck session in front of me." I giggled. Lucci scoffed and walked away, giving me a half wave.

"Hey Kid!" I grinned and sat down next to him. The Goth had a look of annoyance on his face. All I said was 'hello'…

"That your boyfriend?" he inquired. I nodded. "Quite the looker you've picked up. Is he any good?"

"Any good?" What did that mean? Any good at what?

"In bed," Kid clarified. Oh, that's what he meant. I blushed deeply. Kid burst out into a deep rumbling laughter. "I'm kidding. So, now that high school's nearly over, what do you plan to do for college?"

"I don't know!" I deadpanned. Kid sighed. "What about you?"

"I'm aiming for that school in Raftel,  _Shinsekai_." I've heard of that school. It's extremely hard to get into and only geniuses get in there.

"But, Kid, you're not smart! You got held back a bunch of times!" I informed. Kid had a tick mark on his head and slammed his fist into my head. I had teary eyes due to the pain on my head. Kid was a meanie!

"Shut it!" he yelled. The pale man calmed down and spoke again. "A close friend of mine is also applying there as well. I heard Trafalgar is too."

"Are you and Law…?" I made a movement with my hands and Kid gave me a look of horror.

"Oh FUCK no!" he bellowed. "I'm not gay, I'll tell you that. What's your boyfriend's name?" he asked.

"Rob Lucci," I answered.

"Steal the light, huh?" Kid looked to me. "I think I know what the light is," he grinned devilishly. I gave him a look of confusion. "Back to the college subject, do you know what they call the insane prodigies who make it into that school?" I shook my head. "Supernovas."


	8. CP9

"Super… novas?" I repeated. I thought that term was used in science. Something to do with stars, I knew that. It was a cool-sounding name, so I mildly remembered it. An idea hit me. "Maybe I could apply for _Shinsekai_!" Kidd looked at me for a total of four seconds, raising an eyebrow. He then snorted, and then began laughing his ass off. What was so funny? I blinked at him in question. My eyebrows furrowed. "Oi, are you laughing at me?" I demanded, puffing my cheeks out. He laughed even harder. I got a feeling of déjà-vu with this situation. It reminded me of my first date with Lucci. I had said something suggestive unknowingly and it made him chuckle. I didn't understand why he was laughing, so when I asked why, he chuckled even harder. I couldn't really call it a laugh. Now that I think about it, I've never seen Lucci laugh. I mean,  _actually_  laugh. When Kaku found out, he looked at me like I was nuts. Lucci? Laughing or anything close to it? Unheard of! But, that was the first time I learned how happy Lucci is around me. Kaku didn't give me much detail, but Lucci was a distant person, even from him, before he met me. I really want to know what kind of person Lucci was before I met him. But that could wait. Now I want to stick my tongue out at Kidd for laughing at me so much.

"You?!" he managed between his rumbling laughs. They sounded so sinister, for some reason. But they were real laughs, which made me happy that my |although he refused to admit it| friend was laughing, and mad that it was  _me_  he was laughing at. "You have even a less chance than I do!" I just huffed and turned my head away. As much as I hated the fact, Kidd was probably right. I'm not smart or a genius. Lucci or Ace could get in there easily. Nami could as well. She excelled in navigation, after all. It was her passion. I just really couldn't see myself getting in. I sighed. It's hopeless after all, huh?

"But, I can still try, right?" I beamed with confidence at him. For some reason, it pissed him off. Is there anything that doesn't piss Kidd off? Hmm…WAIT! No thinking! Thinking bad! Umm… distract yourself! Food! Food is always an option. Thinking of food is the only exception to thinking. I just realized how hungry I was…

"I'm hungry… Neh, Kidd? Got any food?" The scowl I got in response told me 'no'. "Well, you should!"

"Why, pray tell?" He rubbed his temples. The goth looked like he knew what the answer was, but wasn't going to like it.

"So you can feed me!" Duh! And he already knew the answer! He's slow sometimes. Oh, I did it again! I read his face! It's something Shanks taught me to know my opponent and what they were feeling based on the slightest movements of their face. Or something like that. It's odd, but there's only one person whose face I can't read. Lucci's. He can read mine, though. Strangely enough, he knows how to read faces too! Kaku told me once it was a 'natural talent' he was born with. His ability to do that actually helped me get out of  _that_  situation, but that's a story for later.

Kidd darted his golden eyes* to me. "I think I've had my daily dose of brain cell reduction for the day." Daily dose of wha-? He kept rubbing his temples and began to walk away. "That's right," he stated, probably remembering something. Maybe he remembered that he actually does have food and an undesirable urge to give it to me! "You look good in a dress," he smirked devilishly. Eh? What did- ? Oh no…

"I-I-I-I don't know what y-y-you're talking about!" I tried not to stutter as I kept from having eye contact with him. He didn't look convinced. "Did Law tell you?" I squeaked. If he had, oh, he was going  **down**. I even paid the guy!

"It was fairly obvious. And I was piss drunk, so, it wasn't a very convincing façade." I felt the urge to crawl into a corner now. He yawned and walked away, muttering about how he was planning to avoid Law or something. I just sat up, went the other direction until I noticed something. Two guys walking up. They looked kinda familiar. Oh, right, my personal stalkers.

"THERE HE IS!" the one on the left exclaimed. I panicked. I didn't want them following me! I turned on my heel and made a sprint. Kidd hadn't gotten that far yet.

"Hi, Kidd! Bye Kidd!" I said quickly, zooming past him. My stalkers were close behind. He had a dumbfounded expression on his face. But he let it go. I stopped paying attention to him and made a sharp turn nearly knocking an old man over. "Wari, ossan!" I spoke in my national language. English wasn't my first one, Japanese was. Sometimes I use phrases unconsciously and people look at me weird. I don't have an accent, though. My stalkers were still following me, demanding that I wait. God, no! I don't want to be lectured by them! I saw a curly eyebrow up ahead. Sanji! I'd recognize that suit anywhere! "Oiii! Sanjiiii!" I called, extending his name by a few syllables. He looked at me and then understood that I was gonna ram him if he didn't think fast. His eyes got wide in that realization.

"Wait a minute, Lu- !" My friend didn't even get a chance to finish his sentence as I yanked his arm and dragged him into a dark alley, covering his mouth. The stalkers went past us. I sighed and noticed that Sanji was struggling and turning blue. Ah, I was covering his nose! I quickly let go. He took a much needed breath, and used it to yell at me. "ARE YOU AN IDIOT?! YOU COULD'VE KILLED ME!" he yelled, the wind from his scream blowing my hair back. I quickly apologized. "Shitty bastard. What do you want anyways?" he scowled. Sanji yelled at me a whole lot.

"Sanji," I began seriously. The tone I had gained his attention. "I need some advice." I rarely ask Sanji for stuff, since he focuses on women and would normally brush me off. He was looking at me as if to tell me to continue. "I want to apply for that school in Raftel!" I exclaimed. "But, I hear it's really tough to get into. Should I still go for it? And…" I paused. "I have a question." I was shifting from one topic to another. Sanji was good at following what I said, after knowing me for so long, so he didn't mind. "Do you trust Lucci?" I was nervous about how Ace and Zoro acted around him. They dislike him, I knew that, but they're… wary of him. And I wanted to know if Sanji felt the same.

Sanji took out a cigarette and lit it, taking a drag. "First of all, I personally believe that you aren't cut out for Raftel." My heart dropped. Did he not want me to apply? "But, you aren't cut out for a lot of things, yet you end up being with them." Another drag. "Secondly, why ask me? I'm not really the supportive type, especially when it comes to men." He blew a circle of smoke, instead of a usual blow.

"Well, I wanted to hear your opinion! So, will you teach me?" I beamed my cute look at him. It usually convinces people, mainly Ace. He tries to resist, but it is futile! Heh, I sounded like one of those villains on those cheesy television shows that entertain kids nowadays.

"Teach you?" he repeated. I nodded hastily, the second question I had asked him already forgotten. "No, I don't have the time to be teaching a moron like you," he told me. I quivered my bottom lip and continued my puppy eyes look. "Ask your brother or Lucci to do it." That's right!

"And, to my other question?" I wanted the answer. Badly.

"Hm? Oh, right. Rob Lucci, let's see…" he waited a long time, thinking about his answer carefully. "Well, considering his past, I know that-," I cut him off.

"Past? What about it?" I questioned my womanizer friend. His curly eyebrow rose somewhat. What he said next had my mood darkened with fear.

"You mean you didn't know?" My jaw dropped ajar. What didn't I know? What was I  _supposed_  to know? "I thought he would tell you, of all people." Sanji anticipated that I would know something about Lucci's past. What was it?

"W-What do you mean?" I demanded. Was Lucci hiding something from me? No, I knew he was, but if he was expected to tell me about it, and Sanji, Zoro, and Ace all knew, why didn't I?

Sanji took a drag, much longer than the others he had up to this point. "CP9," he uttered. "Ever heard of it?" I thought about it and realized that not long ago, Zoro had asked me the same thing. I bobbed my head in response.

"Zoro mentioned it, but didn't explain it to me." I murmured. Sanji nodded in understanding.

"Go and ask your boyfriend what it is next time you see him. If he doesn't tell you, then don't pry into it," Sanji warned. "It's not something you should get mixed up in,  _mon héritier_.**" I turned my head to him. French and Gaelic were my secondary languages, so I know what he said. It's Spanish I suck at. I can't even count to three or say hello. Any who, back to business, I'm pretty sure he just said 'my heir'. I tilted my head in confusion. "I've got to get going, see you at work tomorrow night." And he ran off, probably to flirt with some woman.

I took his advice. At work the next day, I went to Lucci's office. I was at the door, ready to knock. However, whenever I got the nerve to knock, it went away. The tight nurse outfit I was wearing wasn't very comfortable either. The high heels no less, bleh. I had long since abandoned wearing my mask because as Kidd said, it wasn't a very good disguise. I just exposed my face, not caring who saw me. I felt so free. Apparently, Bon-chan noticed my dilemma, and as a friend, opened the door, pushed me inside, and closed the door all in under half a second. Lucci looked up from his desk, acknowledging me. His office looked more like an officey type instead of a restaurant type, but I paid no note to it. "What is it?" His hair was in a handsome style, I noticed. A few locks were pulled behind his head, some escaping their confinement, the rest hanging freely, brushing his shoulders.*** It looked very nice on him. Hattori was perched on the desk, pecking at spare crumbs that Lucci probably put there. Hattori was so cute.

"I… um… Have to ask… Y-you something." It didn't come out quite as smoothly as I had wanted it to, but it was good enough. I strode over to him, careful not to fall. My feet betrayed me, those traitors, and I fell face first right in front of his desk. He took his reading glasses off, while observing my clumsy form. I hate heels. They are just pure evil. His curly eyebrows rose for some reason.

"So, three inches is your limit?" he stated. "You can't walk with four inch heels, apparently." He ignored the pain I was in. Or he just didn't notice. I struggled to get up, using his desk as support. Oy vey. "So," he continued, unaffected by my falling whatsoever, "what do you want to ask of me?"

I nearly fell down again had his desk not been there, but I nearly ended up doing the splits. "Can… I sit down somewhere?" I wanted to beg him to. I hate heels, have I mentioned that? I was halfway on the ground with my calves spread in opposite direction, struggling to stand up. I forced my body weight on Lucci's desk, used my arms for support to pull myself up.

"There are no other seats here." I glared at him. But not the menacing ones that I really meant. I would never look at him like that. I only give that look to people I hate, like those heels, and anyone who hurts my friends. I spoke through my gritted teeth.

" **I'll sit on the floor.** " I growled. He didn't seem to mind. So, that's what I did. Until he circled the desk, picked me up like a bride, and sat back down, letting me sit on his lap. He expresses his feelings like that, through action and not a lot of words. I was facing him, and straddling his lap. He put his arm on the armchair of his chair |That's funny to say| and supported his head with his palm.

"Better?" he asked. I nodded happily, smiling. A hand circled my waist loosely. "And? What did you need of me?" I took a deep breath and looked in his eyes. Those forest eyes of his. Like an endless jungle, needing to be explored. He patiently awaited my answer.

"Neh, Lucci?" He looked at me. Oh right, he knew I was going to speak. "What's CP9?" I asked. His expression darkened to fear. His eyes were wide, mouth slightly open, and I could've sworn he was shaking. Why was he acting like that? My memory keeper in my brain decided to spring up something I learned years ago when training for preparation of succeeding the Akagami family. Old Lady Kokoro, or as I liked to call her, Old Monster Lady, taught me how to understand how someone is feeling when looking at the important details in their expression. Yep, she taught me how to read faces.

I decided to put what I learned from her to the test as I examined my boyfriend's face. Hmm… shocked eyes, parted lips, a bit of shadow on his eyes to darken the green in them, the blankness he had to his expression, I knew this one! It was called a 'Memory Flash' or something similar… It's when you have a bunch of memories rush through your head due to a word, action, or phrase. I feel so smart, remembering that. "Lucci?" I called. He didn't respond at all. Strange. Can't he hear me? His lips quivered in the slightest movement. I put my hands on his shoulders. "Lucci!" I called. He just sat there, still unresponsive. My boyfriend's breath hitched. Worried, I shook him heavily. He seemed to snap out of it now. I quickly put my ear to his chest to double-check something. His heartbeat, it was very fast. I couldn't believe it. Was Lucci _scared_? That can't be. He can't get scared. I never knew he  _could_  get scared.

"You okay?" I interrogated. He just glanced into my eyes. I noticed something. They weren't the same eyes that looked at me. They were  _different_  somehow. Then I wondered to myself, was he even looking at me?

"Who told you about that? And…" he paused and took a breath, "who told you that I had a connection to it?" Lucci sounded angry. No, I've never heard this tone from him. It sounded like hatred. When I looked into those eyes of his, I knew one thing. I wasn't looking at Lucci anymore. He was someone different. I felt like I was looking at a complete stranger who had Lucci's face. I tried to push that thought away.

"Oh, you want to guess? Okay!" I smiled cheerfully. "What can I say without completely giving it away…?" I pondered about this. How to describe Zoro and Sanji? "He has green hair!" Doh! That would completely have him guess it! Darn! Lucci just looked at me with those unfamiliar eyes.

"You met Fukuro?" Even his tone of voice and addressing me was different. Was I talking to his evil twin brother now? That would make sense. Alrighty then! How to act around him? Maybe he thinks that he's Lucci, so I guess I could act like I act around Lucci. Easy going, no sudden movements, or he could be on to me.

"No. What's a Fukuro?" I tilted my head. I really should try a career in acting! He is none the wiser. "It was Zoro, silly!" I laughed with my 'shishishishi'. I gently poked him on the nose. "He mentioned it first, but Sanji was the one who told me it had something to do with you. So what is it?" I asked eagerly.

"Nothing that concerns you." I felt a little hurt by that. Why wouldn't he tell me? What was he being so secretive about it?

"At least tell me one thing about it!" I pleaded and gave him my puppy eyes look. He seemed unaffected by it.

"It," he paused again, "does not concern a brat like you. Stay out of it." He growled. I felt anger bubbling up inside me. I hated being called a brat! He knew that!

"A brat? Is that how you see me?" I nearly screamed at him. Evil brother or not, no one calls me a brat. Someone who is unable to do stuff others do. Someone who is weak…

His eyebrow twitched. Lucci let out a sigh. "It stands for Cipher Pol No. 9, is that enough information for you?" Each word that came out of his mouth pounded in my eardrums. What does Lucci have to do with Cipher Pol? Why is he connected to it? What is the connection? The glare Lucci was giving me now scared me. "You know it." His eyes narrowed. "How do you know it?" I immediately got off Lucci and walked backwards around his desk. He rose from his chair and took a step towards me. I took a step back. I hate those eyes he was looking at me with. "I asked you a question, Luffy." I hated the way he said my name. The heels kicked in again and I stumbled backwards and fell on my butt. Lucci bent down and gripped my chin with his hands. "Tell me." His voice was calm, but his eyes. Those damn eyes. Where was the love I always saw in them? There was no jungle, only an empty green barrier, blocking me from his thoughts.

"Who are you?" I said aloud, shocking Lucci. "You aren't Lucci."

"Not the one you know," he uttered under his breath. I jerked my head away from him and backed up, partially opening the door. Lucci slammed it shut before I could make my escape. Something was wrong with Lucci. Very wrong. What did Cipher Pol do to him? I kept backing up, until I met with a wall. My hands scrambled to see if it really was there. Unfortunately, it was. Lucci cornered me. "If you come down to it, how much do you  _actually_  know about me?" he interrogated. I bit my lip. I knew little to nothing about his background or anything.

"I know I love you." I whispered. That caught him by surprise. He backed up from me. "And I know you love me," I smiled. He just blinked. I was happy when I saw his eyes turning back to normal. They weren't a stranger's anymore! "Lucci!" I flashed him a grin before hugging him with everything I had. He loosely hugged me back, but the embrace tightened. Okay, now it was starting to hurt. My boyfriend let go after a while.

"Luffy, I-" I put a finger to his lips to shut him up.

"I'm just glad you're okay. I won't mention that ever again if it turns you into something like that, right?" I flashed him one of my signature grins. He let out a breath of air he seemed to be holding. "You can tell me some other time, okay?" I looked at him. He was the Lucci I knew and loved. He grabbed the hand I was using to cover his lips and tugged it down. Both of his hands cupped my face and he kissed my forehead. I brushed the thought of Cipher Pol and Lucci to the deep, far back of my mind. Little did I know how much that fact would affect me and Lucci.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Are Kidd's eyes golden or red? The wiki on him says their red, but the anime shows them to be gold :/
> 
> **PLEASE, PLEASE do not look up what I put for phrases. I will translate them for you. A certain string of Italian phrases that Lucci says later on are crucial to the story and it would ruin it if you looked it up. And the ironic thing about this is I know little to no French, yet can have a natural conversation with a Spanish-native.
> 
> ***I have no IDEA how to describe that hairstyle. There are pictures if you want a visual image. (Without the spaces)
> 
> 28 . tumblr_lvt1221sxH1qhytqco1_400 . png
> 
> 25 . tumblr_lvt1221sxH1qhytqco2_400 . png
> 
> www . pixiv member_ ?mode=big&illust_id=24420442


	9. Truth

I snickered at the man sitting across from me. Kaku always made me laugh with his odd obsession with giraffes. He was going on about how he had a dream about how he was a square giraffe sword fighting with a moss ball. The long nosed man told me it reminded him of Zoro, which made me laugh even harder. I had met up with my friend for lunch, mostly because I forgot my wallet and I was starving. We just talked about pointless things, stuff no one would consider interesting, but it entertained us. Kaku was still going on about his giraffe dream when I started to do something dangerous,  _thinking_. He's known Lucci longer than I have, right? He's got to know something about him. When I first met Lucci, Kaku was right there, helping him get back up because I ran him over, but that's a story for later.

"Hard to believe it's been four years, right?" Kaku smiled. It was true. Four whole years, I've known and been together with Lucci. Sanji can't make a relationship last four minutes before he sees another beautiful woman and starts pampering her. It's kinda amazing. But, a majority of that time was me in Ireland doing Akagami family business. That's the other reason why Lucci and I haven't gotten far physically, besides me being chicken. There's actually a funny story about that.

_"Long nose." A teacher wearing a fur-rimmed jacket called. Said person waved their hand as a sign of acknowledgement. Smoker, the teacher, or as I called him, Smokey, nodded and marked him as present._

_"Would it kill him to just call me Captain Usopp?" my friend whispered to me. I just laughed my_ shishishi _and waited to be called. I had something important Shanks told me over the phone yesterday, but I can't remember what it was. After a few nicknames and last names were given out, Smokey reached my name._

_"Monkey." I could've sworn he said, 'The ultimate pain in my ass', after that. I just waved at him cheerfully, but he just pinched the bridge of his nose. He loves doing that whenever I talk. I've never known why, though. Nor do I understand why he has a bunch of ibuprofen hiding under his desk. Smokey is one of my favorite teachers, even though he's a butthead most of the time. It's so much fun to bug him! He has a short fuse. And he swears a whole lot, which is pretty funny. I turned and glanced outside, looking at the courtyard of the entrance, and I drifted off into a daze. I don't know how long I spaced out, but it was enough to piss Ol' Smokey off as he slammed a thick hardcover book right in front of me. I jumped at the action. "Pay attention, you'll need this information to pass the exam," he said sternly._

_Wait, I remember I didn't have to take a test anymore. I got a big grin on my face and told him that. He turned boiling red with anger and smacked me on the head. Hard. I rubbed the large bump on my head and started yelling at him for hitting me. He scolded me back and we were screaming at each other on and on. I actually slipped out why I was not going to take the test, "-I'm moving back home!" I yelled. That shut him up._

_"….hah?" was all that left his big mouth. There was nothing but pure silence for a good ten seconds. Usopp was the first to react._

_"YOU'RE MOVING?!" The liar screeched. He took a hold of my shoulders and rapidly shook me. I was getting dizzy from his rapid movements. "AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME? WHERE?!"_

_"Ireland," I answered calmly, trying to stop the world from spinning. Usopp yelled in agony, again. I was about to tell him the rest, but he just ran out of class, screaming. Everyone stared at the door for a while before looking at me again. "I'm moving back, just some family issues," I explained. "I'll be back… at some point." I actually have no idea when Shanks will send me back. Guess I should have asked for that information, right? Smokey just sighed and rubbed a temple with one hand._

_"I assume Portgas is going with you?" Smokey asked. I shook my head._

_"Only on my side of the family." Some of the girls began to blush for a strange reason. "Shanks only wants me there, not Ace." The girls that blushed started muttering stuff about in-laws and "implying marriage" or something I didn't really get._

_"Ace doesn't mind?" Nami asked. I gave my grin to her._

_"Nope, he just doesn't want me falling behind, shishishi… That's where you come in Nami." To reply to that, she pulled at my ear very hard. She looked like she was about so scold me, but then her expression darkened into her "Yaoi Face". Uh oh. She whispered in my ear that only if she gets ALL details for her Yaoi Club about me and Lucci for a month, no generalizations, she'd do it. I stupidly agreed, not remembering the last time._

_A while ago, when I was on my first date with Lucci, I asked him if this was a one-time-thing. He pinned me to the wall, got really close to my face, and murmured, "Not a chance" in my ear. Nami uses Lucci and my dates as fanfiction material, where she actually won an award in her club because it was based on real events. She took pictures, too. Lucci and I never got a moments' peace before he noticed Nami with a camera. One time, she hid in a trashcan and recorded a video of a different date, where we first kissed. She gave her position away by giggling hysterically. Lucci got a scary look on his face, which made Nami sprint like an Olympic runner._

_Anyways, I made it through half the day, and word got around how I was moving, and according to most people, not coming back. Weird. Vivi said it was Usopp's doing, since he never heard me say that I'll come back. Speaking of him, he was a sobbing mess as he hid his head behind his arms on the cafeteria table. Zoro, who was a senior, Vivi, Nami, and I just ate normally, ignoring our long-nosed friend. Zoro's lunch looked particularly delicious today. Nami questioned who made it for him, but he got red in the face a said something about a "friend from another school" under his breath. All of a sudden, Nami and Vivi had horrified looks on their faces and looked at something behind Zoro and me. My moss-haired friend just tilted his head in confusion. Using this chance, I stole his food. My instincts did not pick up the deadly aura behind me. Even Usopp looked up and had the same expression as my two female friends. "What's up? You guys look like you've seen a ghost or something." Someone grabbed me by the collar of my school uniform and slung me over their shoulder. I yelped in surprise and added, "My food!" I wasn't done with it! Zoro turned and was about to protest, but Nami gripped his shoulder tightly and jotted down notes using a particular notepad when she let go. One she only uses for yaoi fanfiction, meaning…_

_My trail of thought stopped and the dude who picked me up led me to outside the lunchroom. I heard, "Oh shit, Lucci's pissed!" and "That monkey kid's gonna die!" before Lucci slammed the doors shut and put me down after we reached and empty hallway far away from lunch._

_**"Talk."** _ _he commanded. My boyfriend's hair was held back in a high ponytail, so he kind of looked like a girl. But, knowing how pissed he is now, I'd better not mention it._

_"I'm moving?" I guessed._

_"So I've heard. Why did you not tell me?" His voice sounded angrier by the second._

_"I forgot." He looked even madder. "But I'll move back!" I quickly added. His curly eyebrows rose in surprise._

_"Why are you moving?" I shrugged. "When are you coming back?" Shrugged again. His hand was flat against the wall beside my head, but it tightened into a fist. "Alright then, considering how far away that country is, do you wish to still have a relationship with me?"_

_"Of course!" I smiled. Lucci put his hand on my shoulder and leaned his forehead against mine. The hand on my shoulder slithered to my neck and chin. "I'll write, or e-mail you, or something," I giggled to him. Lucci sighed again and I could feel his breath on my lips. Without warning, he just attacked my mouth. Okay, I had_ some _warning. We were having a serious make-out session when we heard a crash. Smokey's eyebrows furrowed as he looked from me to Lucci multiple times. He dropped his coffee, too. There was a long pause between the three of us. Smokey-sensei just blinked about five times before finally speaking again._

_"Well, shit. I need a smoke." With that, he turned and walked away. "By all means, continue," he called to us._

Let's just say Smokey never quite looked at Lucci the same way again. He still treated me the same, though. I returned in senior year, and Lucci and I still had a strong relationship. Papa told me that my mom once went away to Paris with her best friend and that the separation made their bond stronger. It really worked with me and Lucci, too! That's the explanation as to why we haven't done it yet. I didn't have to worry about him cheating either, because I trusted him (Also because Nami and Usopp interviewed him all the time. Usopp for reassurance that he wasn't going to hurt me in any way, and Nami for yaoi). During the time I was away, Shanks had me neck deep in missions and paperwork due to how pissed the leader of Cipher Pol's Enies Lobby was at the time. Their attacks were fiercer than ever, but I was never called to face his agents head on for protection. Shanks wanted to keep me a secret. Not so much that he had an heir, but who I was. They could use many things against me.

Kaku and I went back to Lucci's dorm after I ate so much that his wallet couldn't take it anymore and it would've spontaneously combusted had I eaten more, as Kaku puts it. He told me that Lucci was out doing something, so that his roommate would be the only one there. I was finally going to meet the person who rooms with Lucci! I got excited for no reason because of that. Kaku and I both paused as we both heard music coming from the dorm.

_"Just take those old records off the shelf_

_I'll sit and listen to 'em by m'self"_

Kaku and I slowly turned towards each other and back to the door again. Bravely, my friend took out his spare key and unlocked the door.

_"Today's music ain't got the same soul"_

We walked in on a strange man dancing in an undershirt and his underwear. Hey… he was that guy from the video! The one with the Fu Manchu look. Kaku and I just blinked dumbly. The man hadn't even noticed us yet. He just kept on dancing away.

_"I like that old time rock and roll_

_Don't try to take me to a Disco_

_You'll never get me out on the floor"_

The man turned around during one of his dance moves, saw us, and froze with the music still playing. We all stared at each other for one long awkward moment. He turned to Kaku, then to me, then to Kaku again, and then back to me. He slowly walked towards the TV remote and shut the television off.

And the moment continued only without music accompaniment. A couple blinks, deep breaths, and a cough later, Kaku finally spoke. "Luffy, this is Jyabra."

"Hi," I stated a bit too quickly. The strange man furrowed his eyebrows.

"Who's he?" Jyabra addressed Kaku.

"Lucci's boyfriend," Kaku answered while taking a seat on the couch, setting his things down. Jyabra's face lit up in realization. The man walked towards a mini refrigerator and pulled out a couple of beers. He tossed one to Kaku and the other to me. I barely caught it. He seemed to not care that he was in his underwear. I looked down at the beer in me, and before I could open it, Kaku snatched it from me. "Lucci wouldn't want you drinking beer," he explained. As if on cue, Lucci opened the door and walked in. "Speak of the devil…" he mumbled. Lucci looked to me and then to Jyabra, and raised a curly eyebrow.

"Hey, kitten!" Jyabra greeted. Lucci growled at the nickname and looked to Kaku.

"Why do you have two beers?" he inquired. Kaku looked to Jyabra and then back to Lucci.

"He, um, accidentally got an extra one," Kaku said. I furrowed my eyebrows. Didn't he get one for me? Why did Kaku tell him that?

"I thought it was because-," Kaku slammed his hand over my mouth before I could finish. He leaned in close and whispered to me.

"Don't start a fight between them!" I nodded and he let go. Lucci passed by behind the couch and ruffled my hair before getting himself a beer. "Oh, you should probably put some pants on…" Kaku added in his regular voice to Jyabra. Said man looked down at his lack of attire.

"Good call." He stated and hurried to another room. Kaku laughed and was about to say something when a beeping sound came from his pocket.

"Oh crap," he said, "I have to work. See you guys later!" he called as he went out the door. Lucci gave him a nod as acknowledgement, and I waved bye to him. Now it was just me and Lucci.

"And then there were two…" he stated. I tilted my head in confusion. "A quote from a book," he explained. I glanced down at the beer below me. I was thirsty from the walk over here. I've smelled beer on the breath of drunken customers, but I've never had any. So I picked it up and opened the can. I tilted the can back along with my head when something grabbed my wrist. "You shouldn't have any." Lucci said before he took the beer away from me.

"But I'm thirsty!" I whined.

"I'll get you water," my boyfriend replied before going into the kitchen to do the task. I puffed my cheeks out and got up off the couch. I sat down on the ground next to the coffee table. Lucci came back with the water and just occupied himself with a large book. As I studied him, I noticed how Lucci's eyes were a deep shade of green, almost shining. His hair was in a loose ponytail, and it revealed his structured forehead and jawline. His goatee was such an odd shape, like a horseshoe, but it was still… hot. His curly eyebrows actually worked well with his face. Did they naturally grow like that, or did he style them that way? The more I stared at him, the more the room seemed to get warmer. Lucci sighed, and without looking up, asked, "Why are you staring at me so much?" I just blinked as his fingers curled the slightest on his book. I gulped, imagining a place where they might else be. On me… in me… The room just got  _way_  warmer at that thought. "I said-" he glanced up.

"Lucci," I uttered. His completely focused his attention on me. He set his book down and was taking a sip of water when I said, without thinking, "make love to me." His shoulders arched up and he coughed a bit.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked, his voice a bit strained.

"Take me," I said and stood up and walked over to him. I straddled him and held myself close to him. The thoughts of him dominating me were taking over my brain. I wanted him. Now. "Right here. Right now," I breathed in his ear. I just did what my instincts told me to do and licked his neck. He shuddered in pleasure, but I felt him slightly push me away.

"Luffy," he started. "Stop." I looked at him. Did I do something wrong? "What's gotten into you?" I just kept staring at him. The room was so hot, it was unbearable. "I've never seen you so interested in sex before."

"Well maybe I should be. And it's making love, not sex," I corrected him.

"Huh…?"

"I'm doing it with someone I love, that's the difference." I grinned. I leaned up to get to his lips, but he pushed my away again.

"Just wait…" he demanded. "Why are you rushing into this?"

"We've been together for over four years," I said. "I thought would want to…" I mumbled. "Do you not want me?" I asked. Lucci flicked my forehead. "Ow!"  
"Idiot, of course I do, but I don't think we should do this right this second," he clarified.

"Oh come on, kitten. He's practically begging." Jyabra walked back in, with pants, and smirked. Lucci stood up after removing me from his lap. He bopped Jyabra on the head. Pretty hard from the way he fell on the ground like that. I turned my head and scanned the room for something interesting to occupy myself with. Something caught my eye and I headed towards it. I saw a model of a King Bull and awed in fascination.

Lucci came back and looked at me. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"You never told me you've been to Water 7!" I exclaimed. I picked it up and admired it. It was pretty cute! King Bulls are Water 7's national animals. You can find a picture of them anywhere in the place. I last went there to go visit Uncle Franky. Thinking of him… I made myself sad. Uncle Franky died a few years ago, assassinated. "When did you go?" I turned and looked at the wide-eyed Jyabra and the blank look on Lucci's face.

"About five years ago, I think," Jyabra answered and took the King Bull out of my hands.

"Oh, did you know Uncle Franky?" I asked, excited. Jyabra dropped the King Bull and it shattered on the floor. I gasped and my face fell into a frown.

"Why'd you drop it? It was adorable!" I told him.

"Kid…" he started, "did you just say  _Uncle_  Franky?" he asked. I nodded.

"He wasn't really my uncle, but he was family." I smiled. "He died a few years ago, though. You know, I think it was five years ago," I thought aloud. Jyabra had this really guilty look on his face.

"Um… kid?" he scratched the back of his head, "Listen—," his sentence was cut short as Lucci elbowed him in the stomach. "You son of a-!" he cursed.

"What?" I questioned.

"Nothing important," Lucci replied.

"NOTHING IMPORTANT MY ASS!" Jyabra yelled. "ARE YOU GOING TO LIE THROUGH YOUR TEETH OR DO I HAVE TO TELL HIM THAT WE-," Lucci used an outside block and nailed him in the nose.

"Shut it, mutt," Lucci snarled dangerously.

"Oi!" I glared and got both of their attentions. "What aren't you telling me? What's going on?" I yelled.

Lucci sighed and crossed his arms. "I guess there's no choice…" He sat down on the couch and motioned for me to sit across from him. I did so and waited patiently. "Listen carefully, Luffy." He waited for a bit. "What I'm about to tell you could get you and us killed, so you need to listen and never repeat what I'm about to say to you, understand?" I told him I did. Taking a deep breath, he began. "Remember that night at Baratie? Where I… changed?" he said, pausing at the last word. I nodded. "I told you that it stood for Cipher Pol No. 9, correct?" I nodded once again. "Jyabra, Kaku, and I were once members of that group. We were stationed at Enies Lobby." My eyes widened after every word. I looked down and saw that he was clenching his arms so tight that his knuckles were white. "On a mission to Water 7, we were assigned to kill a man named Cutty Flam should he not give us the…" he trailed off. "As it turns out, he already gave away what we needed, so we assassinated him."


	10. Katharine

Lucci, Jyabra and I just sat there in silence for god knows how long. I tried to think rationally, but I couldn't. Uncle Franky was killed by faceless assassins. Bad guys. People from Cipher Pol. Lucci wasn't the bad guy. He was Lucci.  _My_  Lucci. He wouldn't do anything like that. I recalled what happened at the Baratie when I even  _mentioned_  Cipher Pol. He was a whole different person. What was he like before I knew him? My thoughts were extremely overwhelming so I just uttered, "Why?" in a shaky voice. "Uncle Franky was…" Jyabra looked down at the floor and bit his lip.

"I'm sorry, kid. It was an order. We didn't know." I tried to understand. Really, I did. But, killing Uncle Franky was just, too horrible. I bit the inside of my lip to calm myself. Jyabra's sympathetic look just made my chest tighten with sadness. He moved closer to me and put his hands on my shoulders. "Listen, we've done a bunch of messed up shit in our lives. Some involved horrible things that you can't even _begin_  to imagine, kid. But," he paused and his hands squeezed on my shoulders, "that's not who we are anymore! Please, try to understand that!" he begged. I just stared at him in shock. "There are reasons we left that _helvede_." I didn't know what the last word meant, but he continued, "We've changed. You've no idea how much…"

"B-But…" I uttered, knowing my voice was so close to breaking. I took a deep breath in to calm myself. At this point, Lucci decided to speak.

"What's done is done." The coldness of his voice gave me such an uneasy feeling. "You can't change what happened."

"Oi, oi," Jyabra said. I guess even he thought Lucci was being a bit cruel.

I found my voice and asked, "Aren't you the least bit sorry?"

"Is there a reason I should be?" He's being the Lucci from before. The Lucci I couldn't bear to look at. Because looking at that Lucci felt like I was looking at a complete… monster. "What he possessed was dangerous and the order was clear. It had to be done." Now, I was getting mad. My hands balled into fists. I remembered what kind of person Uncle Franky was. He was really talented in architecture and reading blueprints. He also always found a way to make me smile. He wasn't dangerous at all! And whatever he had, it didn't make  _him_ dangerous!

"Are you really so heartless?" I said softly, but he heard me.

"Heartless? Not even close. Cutty Flam was a threat that needed to be removed." He stood up with his hands in his pockets with an unreadable expression. Whatever that look on his face meant, I hated it.

I stomped towards him in anger, "We're talking about taking a life here!" I yelled at him. "Don't talk about 'removing him' or whatever so lightly! He was family!"

"Maybe to you but to me, he was just a necessary sacrifice for the better of the world," He was so  _different_  from the Lucci I knew.

"Shut up! You didn't know him! Stop talking like you know everything!" I screamed.

"Stop being a kid and face the truth!" he retorted in an equally loud voice. Neither of us heard Jyabra trying to end the argument desperately. "He's dead, and there's nothing you can do about it!"

"You're pissing me off, Lucci!" I growled in anger. I tightened my fists until my knuckles were white.

"The feeling's mutual, you brat!" Oh, no he did  _not_  just call me that. "Just accept what happened, already!" my boyfriend roared. He reached out to put his hand on my shoulder but I slapped it away.

"Don't touch me, pigeon-bastard," I grumbled. I don't know where I got the name from. I guess it was because I saw Hattori out of the corner of my eye or something. Lucci looked at his rejected hand and then to me.

"Oh? Or what?" he challenged.

"O.K.!" Jyabra, said quickly. "Let's all calm it down a bit." He used hand gestures for emphasis for us to tone it down. Lucci and I were both snarling at each other. "How about we all sit on the couch, and relax?"

"Stay out of it!" we both yelled at him.

"Cutty Flam had to be eliminated!"

"Can you really just kill someone just because it was an order?! Is following orders all you can do?! Is that really the kind of person you are?!" I screamed. Lucci's eye twitched and he ground his teeth. Jyabra's face paled.

"K-Kid, you  _really_  shouldn't have said that," he whispered to me.

"I knew I shouldn't have told you anything. You're nothing but a child, trying to hide from reality." He lowered his voice, but the tone still sent shivers down my spine.

"I already accept that he's dead." Lucci still had an unreadable expression on his face. "I just can't accept that you're not in the least bit sorry for killing him!"

"If I were to feel sorry for every person I've wronged, I'd be drowning in a sea or regret, which is useless. Thinking like that is just plain stupid, you ignorant-" I had enough of him running his mouth. So I took my knee and nailed him in the crotch as I could. He froze at first, and then doubled over in pain. "Y-You…" he struggled to talk. I just stormed out of there, ignoring Jyabra trying to stop me.

I swear; the nerve of that guy. Anger was swelling up inside me as I stomped further and further away. Lucci was such a bastard! I ha-! My eyes widened as I stopped my train of thought. I shouldn't think like that. I'm just mad at him right now. Really mad. But, I don't hate him. I don't. About ten minutes of walking further and further away from the dorm, I crossed paths with Kaku, who was going the opposite direction.

"Oh, Luffy!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing out here?" He tried to ruffle my hair, but I smacked his hand away. My anger took over, and I glared at him ruthlessly. He was one of  _them_. He helped kill Uncle Franky. "Luffy?" he looked at me in surprise. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to be touched by filthy hands like yours, Cipher Pol," I growled at him. Kaku froze immediately.

"H-How do you…?" I didn't wait to hear the rest of his reaction.

Instead, I kept walking for some time, and found myself at Drum Mall. It's really weirdly built. It's made up of a collection of buildings in the shape of giant pillars. But they're really cool when it snows because all the Sakura trees around the property bloom and stick to the snow. It looks like it's snowing Sakura blossoms. I usually come here with Lucci- NO! Don't think about him. Shaking my head, I opened the doors and stepped inside. This place really was huge, though. It had like, four stories and was incredibly crowded. The sweet scent of food filled my nostrils and I began to drool a little bit.

Then, I remembered I didn't have my wallet. Crap. I can't eat. My stomach growled in frustration. I know, tummy, I know. I just plopped down on a bench and pouted. My arms were crossed over my belly, and my legs were spread apart. This just isn't my day. I'm already pissed off, now I can't eat! A voice broke me out of my sulking.

"Excuse me, but may I sit here? There's nowhere else." I looked up and say a pretty woman. She had long, blonde hair, glasses, and makeup on. Wow, she's really beautiful. I just nodded and she sat down. She had a very elegant aura around her, and I suddenly felt insecure about my jeans and hoodie. Only a little, though. I'm not very concerned with my appearance to begin with. I didn't notice that in the entire time that I was in thought, I was staring right at her. "You shouldn't stare so much. It's sexual harassment." I just blinked.

"Really?" was all I could utter.

"That's correct." I looked at her for another ten seconds before turning away. "It probably is none of my business, but you don't seem too happy, is something wrong?" she asked. Wow, her voice was so smooth and kind.

"Yeah…" I said. I focused my gaze on the floor.

"Would you like to talk about it?" she offered.

"Not really," I said.

"I see." We sat there in silence again. "My name is Ka-," she cut herself off with a sneeze, "Katharine." She quickly got a tissue out of her purse and blew her nose before throwing it away.

"Kakatharine?" I tilted my head in confusion. What a weird name.

"No, you're mistaken. It's just Katharine," she corrected me.

"Are you sick or something?"

"No, I am not." She paused before adjusting her glasses. "But thank you for your concern." I went back to my thinking. Maybe I shouldn't have kneed him in the balls as hard as possible. But, he was wrong in the first place and had it coming. Dumb pigeon-guy. Then, I remembered my anger. I remembered exactly what happened not too long ago. Gah! Why I can't get Lucci off my mind? I clutched my forehead, trying to force thoughts of him away. "You know," Katharine drew me from my thoughts, "you can tell me what's bothering you if it's affecting you to that point." I just sighed a loud sigh.

"Alright. My boyfriend is a jackass," I said. Katharine blinked at me for a bit.

"Boyfriend?" she uttered. A small amount of surprise made it to her face. Then her expression returned to normal. "What did he do?" I needed to be careful about my answer. Anything I say could put Lucci, Jyabra, and Kaku in danger. Even though I'm pissed at them, I don't want them to get hurt.

"He…," I'm no good with words! What do I do? "…hurt someone in my family." Okay, that's a good way to put it. Keep going, Luffy! "And he's not even sorry for it." I inwardly cheered. For someone who sucks at hiding things, I think that was a pretty good job!

"I see. How did he hurt that someone?" she asked. I bit my lip and stared at the floor. How was I supposed to tell some woman I just met that my boyfriend killed my uncle?! Seeing my reaction, she spoke some more, "My apologies. I shouldn't have asked you that. It was sexual harassment," she said while fixing her glasses.

"It's okay," I reassured her. She looked at me for a while before standing up.

"I don't know about you, but when a guy makes me upset, one way to forget about it is by shopping!" she smiled. Katharine walked in front of my and held her hand out. "What do you say?"

"That sounds boring," I bluntly said. She chuckled.

"Not in the slightest. I can teach you the joy of it!"

"Isn't that what girls do, though? I'm not a girl," I responded. She put her hands on her hips and leaned forward towards me so that our faces were almost touching.

"You don't have to be." I just tilted my head at her serious tone. She then stood back upright and continued speaking, "Oh, do you have your boyfriend's credit card number?" I shook my head. What did that have to do with anything? "I see, we could've made him bankrupt, but oh well," she mumbled.

"Like I said, I don't want to do anything like that!" I declared. A large rumble came from my stomach. Damn, I was hungry! Katharine just stared at me.

"We can eat afterwards," she said.

"I'm in," I quickly replied. Katharine laughed and tucked a bit of hair behind her ear. She picked up her purse and I found myself watching her again. She was wearing a light blue, sleeveless, collared dress that had the top three buttons undone, and ended right below her behind. She also had on stockings which were staying on her thighs with suspender-like thingies. On her feet were black boots. I rapidly adverted my eyes and silently hoped she hadn't caught me staring again. I'm not into girls, but she was really pretty. I mean really, really pretty.

"What's your name?" I heard.

"Luffy," I answered. I got up from the bench and walked beside her, my hands in my pockets.

"I see." Then, we began our adventure. It wasn't boring like I thought it would be. Actually, it was fun! We went through all the stores, trying on clothes and stuff. We also got to know one another a bit better. Katharine was a bookworm, and enjoyed writing as well. She also was very athletic and was the head cheerleader when she was high school. I was very happy because I made a new friend! I didn't try to hide it either with the massive grin I had on my face. We were in the middle of swapping stories when she paused her story about the cool animals she saw when she visited Argentina and stopped walking. "I'd like to stop here for a bit," she said.

Her finger was pointed to the store to the right of us. It said 'Victoria's Secret'. I may be dense to a lot of things, but I knew what that place sold. Bon-chan had to go there to order designs for new costumes for the Night Baratie strippers. He even offered me to have one, but…  _that guy_  |I refuse to say my boyfriend's name at the moment| had a fire in his eyes that screamed 'death' to Bon-chan and started yelling at him for 'trying to ruin my innocence' or something like that. Katharine and I walked in and she began looking at that fancy underwear. I never understood what was so great about it, but girls seem to love that type of stuff. "What do you think of this one?" She gestured to a lavender top that was see-though except for the bray part with white lace bordering the edges. It had matching panties, too.

"It looks nice," I said honestly.

"Should I try it on and then show it to you?" she offered. Wait, wouldn't that be considered sexually harassment?

"You can do what you want, but I think it'll bring out your eyes," I told her. Say, when did I get a taste for fashion? I guess it would be Nami's influence.

"Oh, you really think so?"

"Sure, whatever."

Katharine smiled and her face lit up. "I've got an idea!" she announced. I raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Let's get one for you!" A small bit of silence occurred while that seeped into my brain.

"WHAT?!" I screamed, drawing the attention of the other shoppers. "Why?!" Katharine fixed her glasses again.

"Let me explain. Men are simple creatures. They don't think with their brains all the time." Eh? Then what do we think with? "They have two settings: turned on and turned off. That's basically it." I was starting to get it. "When they're turned on, no rational thoughts enter their mind because they aren't thinking with their mind." I just blinked and waited for her to continue. "So, if we manage to get your boyfriend turned on, you can get him to do almost anything." Ah, I get it now.

"Even make him apologize?"

"He will be begging on his knees once you're through with him," she fixed her glasses again. She does that a lot.

But wait… "Isn't this sexual harassment?" I asked.

"No, it isn't. Trust me, I'm an expert at these things," she assured.

"I don't think I need to do that," I laughed.

"Really?" she said. I just giggled some more.

After about two more hours trying to find what suited Katharine the best, we finally headed to the top floor, which had restaurants that sold  _delicious_  food. We were sitting across from each other, and Katharine was taking a sip of her drink while I wolfed down a bunch of food. "So," she began, "did that help?" I looked at her questionably before remembering why we started shopping in the first place. Then a wave of glum hit me as I recalled what had happened a while ago. The dark aura I had sort of freaked Katharine out. "S-Sorry, I shouldn't have reminded you."

"It's alright, I'm mostly over it," I told her. "But thanks for this!" She looked surprised. "It really helped me feel better! I'm not as mad anymore! Shishishi!" Katharine chuckled at my odd laugh.

"If you don't mind me asking, what kind of man is your boyfriend?" was the question I was thrown at. Let's see… how to describe Lucci…

"He's tall, has black hair," I began. I was about to go on about his funny eyebrows when Katharine spoke again.

"Really? What's his heritage?" Seeing the confused look on my face had her reword her question. "Where's he from? For example, is he Russian?"

"No," I calmly answered. "He's Italian." I only knew that because whenever Lucci's really angry, he curses in Italian. It always sounded like a mixture of Spanish and French, and I never bothered to learn the language. This one time, a customer like that Bellamy bastard was simply flirting with me, but according to Lucci and a lot of other people, I was being verbally sexually harassed. The man wouldn't stop even after a few warnings, and he said some things that I didn't really understand to my boyfriend once he intervened. But I knew they were insulting because of Lucci's reaction. He lifted the man up by his shirt and growled at him in Italian. The man apparently understood, due to how much his face paled when Lucci finished talking. Lucci then let him go and the guy immediately ran out of the restaurant. I asked him what he said, but he just put his arm around my shoulders and told me that it wasn't important.

"Hmm?" she said, interested. "I used to date an Italian guy." The curiosity in my eyes must have shown, because she went on, "He was tall and had wavy black hair, like you…" she paused, "…described." Katharine quickly shook her head. "They're no way it would be the same person," she verbalized.

"Eh? Why?" I asked.

"Trust me, the guy I knew wouldn't be with you." I felt a little offended at that. "Not to be mean or anything, it's just, as much as I cared for him, he was dangerous." I took another bite of food. "He wasn't entirely mentally stable, either. So, what I'm saying is that a nice boy like you couldn't end up with a guy like him."

"If he was so dangerous, why'd you date him?" I questioned. Katharine sighed.

"Oh, I don't know. We were both young, and eager." She took a breath, "It was mostly a physical relationship, unlike how you described yours while we were shopping. We had sex numerous amounts of times," she said while pushing her glasses up. "In the end, he just left me," she looked down.

"Sounds like a real jerk," I bluntly declared. The woman across from me chuckled at that.

"No, no, it was for the best." Katharine took another sip of her drink and crossed her legs. "There were heavy strains in his life and mine. The relationship wasn't going to last, either." Katharine stared off to the side and looked at her reflection through the giant glass windows surrounding this area of the mall. I just continued to eat.

"By the way," I said through mouthfuls, "There's a guy who's been following us for a while now," I swallowed the rest of my meal.

"Yes, I'm aware," she replied. Katharine brushed her hair back with her hand. "He's been following us since Nordstrom. But don't worry, he's just listening to our conversation."

"Eh? Why?"

"I may have made a few people angry on my way over here," she chuckled seductively.

"Oh," I blinked at her. "Want me to beat him up?" Katharine just laughed.

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself."

"Is that why you have a knife behind your hair?" I asked.

"Oh, so you noticed?" she spoke.

"Yeah, same with the gun in your purse." Katharine looked mildly shocked at that.

"How long have you known?" she asked.

"When you sneezed." She gave me a questioning look. "Your hair sort of ruffled and I saw a bit of the knife, but when you got your tissue out, that's when I noticed the gun."

"Aren't you the observant one?" she responded. "I thought I hid them so well." She pushed her glasses back again and smirked.

"Are you on the run or something?"

"No, I'm just trying to find someone who  _is_  on the run. Merely observing. Speaking of which… I'll be right back." She stood up from her seat and walked over to the area where the guy was watching us. Katharine was acting flirty with her body language, and dragged him over behind a corner. Was she going to seduce him to get what she wants? That's what Nami does when she wants something from Sanji. I actually knew him before I worked at the Baratie. His father was an old friend of Bellemere's and Nami knew him pretty well. After hearing a few grunts of pain from the corner, I saw her coming back and then she sat down. "Don't worry, he won't bother us again," she smiled sweetly.

"Okay," I stole some of her food, but she didn't seem to mind.

"That's a beautiful necklace," she commented.

"Oh, thanks."

"A gift?" she inquired. I nodded. "From your boyfriend?" Another nod from me. "It's really beautiful. But why a straw hat, I wonder?"

"Who knows?"

"Have you ever taken it off?" I shook my head. Even when I was furious with Lucci, I still didn't take it off. Because that necklace is more important than an argument, no matter how bad it gets. "It really suits you, though." Katharine rested her chin on the palm of her left hand. There was a silence between us. I looked at her again and she just smiled at me.

The abrupt sound of running and a few shouts drew our attention to the wide entrance of the restaurant. The next thing I knew, Lucci, Jyabra, and Kaku were all pointing guns at Katharine. "Don't move, Kalifa!" Jyabra ordered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> helvede: Danish for 'hell'
> 
> Extra:
> 
> This happened when Lucci was rapidly driving to get to Luffy with Kaku and Jyabra in the car.
> 
> Jyabra: KITTEN, SLOW THE FUCK DOWN!
> 
> Kaku: We're gonna die, we're gonna die...
> 
> Lucci: No way. Luffy's in danger and it's because of my ignorance. I never expected Kalifa to get here this fast.
> 
> (sharp turn left)
> 
> Kaku and Jyabra were both hanging on for dear life and screaming at the top of their lungs.


	11. Bull Fight

"Lucci!" Katharine and I both exclaimed at the same time. We turned to each other and spoke simultaneously again, "How do you know him?"

"He's the guy I dated before!" she said.

"He's the guy  _I'm_  dating!" We stared at each other in shock, and then turned to the trio in front of us. Jyabra and Kaku sent me odd looks, while Lucci held his glare at Katharine.

"What a coincidence," I heard Katharine mumble. "Does he still get mad when you touch his paraphernalia?" she asked me. What the heck did that last word mean? "His belongings," the blonde clarified.

"I dunno," I shrugged. "He let me wear his had a few times, but he doesn't get that mad." Katharine had a shock on her face.

"Such sexual harassment!" she put her hands on her hips. I jumped a bit at her accusation. "He was never like that when I dated him," Katharine scowled. Then she continued her rant with a story, "Every now and then, I would wake up in his room." I couldn't help the large crack my heart made at the thought of Lucci being with someone else. It really hurt. "And I needed to get ready for the day, but my hair was a mess. So I went to his bathroom and borrowed his brush. Seriously, he has ten times more beauty products than I do," she whispered that last part to me while holding her hand vertically to her face. Then, in her regular voice, she continued, "Unknowingly, I took his brush with me to my bathroom and left it there. He nearly tore the entire  _tower_  apart trying to find it. When I told him I had it, he kept berating at me about boundaries for a good three hours." That didn't sound like Lucci at all. I took his hat off his head once and put it on top of mine. He just put his hand on top of the hat and told me to give it back when I was done with it.

"Really? He's never even mentioned anything like that," I gave her a puzzled look. "He hasn't told me much about him, actually," I wondered aloud.

"You mean he hasn't told you about the perfume incident?" I tilted my head in confusion. Then I shook my head. "Well, it all started out when I found this  _amazing_  perfume. It suited me to perfection, if I do say so myself," she pushed her glasses up again, "and at any rate, I brought it back with me to Enies Lobby. Even then, I was unaware of the fact that Lucci had the exact same brand, but as a cologne." I nodded in understanding. "Sooner or later, it wound up it Lucci's bathroom and-," Jyabra cut her off.

"Kalifa, that's enough. Despite how hilarious," he smirked but then it died down, "that was, I believe we were in the middle of getting you away from the kid." Katharine's eyes narrowed. The blonde pushed her glasses up again.

"This is sexual harassment, Jyabra," she told him. Jyabra had an anger vein mark forming on his head.

"How can you be so damn relaxed a gunpoint?!" he shouted.

"Hey, Katharine," she turned to me, "why are they so mad at you?"

"I apologize, Luffy," she began. "Although I truly have enjoyed the past few hours with you, I've done nothing but feed you lies piled on truths from the very start." I blinked. "My real name is Kalifa, and as to why they're so mad at me…" In nanoseconds, Kalifa was behind me, and she twisted my arm behind my back, locked her leg around mine, and held a blade to my throat. "I'm a danger to you."

Kaku clocked his gun, "Kalifa, let him go!" he demanded.

"Or what? Are you going to shoot him to get to me?" she chuckled darkly. Jyabra merely smirked.

"You know I can curve a bullet better than anyone." I furrowed my eyebrows. Did he say  _curve_  a bullet? How the heck do you do that?

"Luffy, what's the Copenhagen Interpretation?" Lucci threw the question at me. I tilted my head a lot in confusion.

"I don't know…" I told him. A bullet whizzed pass me and I heard Kalifa gasp. I changed my viewing perspective and her cheek was bleeding. Oh-! I get it! Lucci was making me tilt my head so that the bullet wouldn't hit me.

"That was a warning shot, Kalifa," he uttered in a scary voice. "Let. Him. Go," he strained every word. I tilted my head back to where it normally was. Kalifa's grip tightened on me.

"Nah, I'm good," she purred to him. "I came to see what was keeping Lucci away from home, and I never thought it would be a person, of all things." Jyabra was the first to blow up in anger.

"You call that place a home?! That place was more of a hell for Lucci!" he roared. "You don't know how much pain he was in!" he accused.

"I'm well aware of what was going on in Enies Lobby. As I told you before, I thought you both were deceased."

"Bull. Shit. First off, you left us for dead and you know it, you bitch!" Jyabra barked. "Secondly, do you really think that was the only reason?! You've no idea how much he suffered because of-," Kaku cut him off.

"Jyabra! This is neither the time nor the place to discuss that. We need to focus on Luffy's safety right now." Jyabra paused, and then nodded in understanding. I took in their conversation slowly. I found myself repeating questions from before in my mind. What happened to Lucci? What did Enies Lobby do to him? I'll ask him once I get out of this mess.

"Luffy," I felt Kalifa's breath on my neck, "Despite the circumstances, you understand why I have to threaten or possibly kill you. But you'll forgive me, right?"

I twisted my neck so that my left eye could see her face, "Sure, why not? I mean after all, I'm used to  _betrayal_." I stressed the last word and caught a flicker in Lucci's forest green eyes.

Kaku was now giving Kalifa another warning. Judging by the tone in his voice, it was her last one. Still, she refused to let go of me. I took a deep breath in and calmly closed my eyes. I reopened them and got Kalifa's attention. "Neh, Kalifa," I uttered in a serious voice.

"Hm?" her voice sparked with curiosity.

"Given the order, would you really kill me?" I questioned.

"Without hesitation," she quickly replied. "I apologize, but this is how things work." She had no sympathy in her tone despite her words.

"I see. Well then," I gripped her wrist with the knife and wrung it out of her hands, elbowed her in the stomach, crouched down and delivered a low-stance roundhouse kick to her chin all in one swift movement. I heard a dull crack from her jawbone. She staggered back and held her right hand to her lip, which was now bleeding.

"You're no ordinary man, are you?" she smirked.

"I don't recall ever saying that I was," I answered emotionlessly. I understood how serious the situation was. This was no time to play around. I recalled what Zoro told me once about Enies Lobby about a year ago.

_'Never get involved with those guys. They are relentless, killing machines. I saw the single man who was responsible for the Whiskey Peak Massacre. And he looked the second or third strongest in the room.'_

They are monsters. Never forget it, Luffy, I told myself. Lucci, Kaku, and Jyabra belonged to that group. This only adds on to the tons of questions in my brain. But, regardless of everything… I could picture certain memories with the three of them. Kaku telling me to beat up that Bellamy bastard. Jyabra dancing in his underwear. And Lucci… there were so many good memories with him. Ruffling my hair. Holding me close to him. Kissing me. Protecting me. Telling me he loves me. No…, Lucci couldn't be a bad person. I've known him for so long. He just can't be.

I was so lost in thought that I barely missed the kick Kalifa aimed at me. Then I was almost cut by the knife she had picked up from the floor. When she brought her other leg up to kick me, I grabbed it, tugged her forward, and twisted her arm so that the knife was pointing towards her neck. She panted slightly. The blonde tried to hide it, but I could tell she was nervous. Her face gave it away, whether she was good at hiding emotions or not.

"Good job, kid!" I heard Jyabra. "Hold her like that, and we'll take care of the rest!"

"Blueno." Was the warning I got before I was punched in the stomach and sent flying into a table. Thankfully, no one was here anymore because they ran out earlier on. Damn, where are the cops when you need them?! There are now two people trying to kill me! I blinked and the next thing I knew, the guy who kicked me |he looked like a bull, honestly| was kicked in the face and smashed into the wall across the room from the sheer force of the kick. There were cracks around the bull's body in the wall. Woah. Lucci was now lowering his foot and put himself between me and Kalifa.

"If either of you ever lay your filthy hands on him again, I will  _ **kill**_  you." I didn't know Lucci was this strong. And terrifying. I felt goose bumps one my skin from his voice alone. Is he always this scary in battle? "Kaku, Jyabra. Get Luffy out of here," he ordered.

"You weren't alone…" I told Kalifa who only chuckled.

"I don't recall ever saying that I was." She threw my words back at me.

The bull removed himself from the wall and brushed the dust and cracked wall parts off him. "Making such a fuss… over such a weak boy. This doesn't seem at all like you, Lucci," he commented. Weak? Oh, I'll show him just how  _'weak'_  I really am. I stood back up and got into a fighting position. These people… they're from the place that made Lucci suffer. The place that made him such a cruel person when I brought it up. The bull charged and attempted to get at me, but I was surprised when he staggered back after a gunshot was heard. Lucci had shot him in the shoulder.

"I won't say it again," my boyfriend growled lowly. "Get. Him. Out. Of. Here," he commanded again to Jyabra and Kaku. Both were hurrying towards me, but Kalifa had kicked me smack in the head and was flung headfirst at the large glass window. I could've dodged that! Why didn't I? Now, I felt a bit dizzy. I clutched my head, gah! Is this what a migraine feels like? Shanks complained about them loads of times. I felt blood trickle down my forehead.

"Luffy," I heard Lucci's voice, calm. He wrapped his hand around my torso and the other around my elbow to help me up. He moved my bangs and looked my wound over.

"Hey, Lucci, t-there's two of you?" I muttered. I didn't know he had a twin. Was it the evil one from before?

"His vision is doubling," he announced. Then he turned to me, "Just relax and let Kaku take you to a hospital."

"Oh, there's three of him!" I giggled. Kaku was so funny. He had two brothers. I wonder if Usopp is one of them. He had to be. Just look at their noses.

"Yes, there are," Lucci agreed. He had a strong hold on me. I closed my eyes one more time and shook my head a little to snap out of it. I was almost too late as I blocked Kalifa's strong kick. The heel of her shoe dug into my arm and it did hurt somewhat. Out of the corner of my eye I witnessed Lucci grabbing her by the throat and forcing her away from me. She landed harshly on her back. Lucci opened and closed his palm, his knuckles cracking while he did so.

The bull took this chance to sneak past him, hook his elbow around my neck and smash us through the window. Another gunshot. His head was bleeding, but he still dragged me out of the window. He showed no signs of letting go. Was he  _crazy_? We were on the top freaking floor! I desperately reached out to someone who would help me. It happened to be Lucci.  _'It will always be Lucci…'_  was what I thought at that moment. I saw him stretching him arm out to reach me. "Lucci… help me," I pleaded. Our fingers nearly touched and the next thing I knew, I was plummeting to the ground, the bull still having his grip on me.

We were pretty damn close to splatting on the ground when I heard the sound of a helicopter and Kalifa had jumped out the hole in the window as well. She made it to the ladder of the helicopter, and the bull fired some wire thing to attach him and me to it as well. The hell I would let them! Find a weak point. I had no time to think, but all the training I had at the Akagami Family paid off right now. I slammed my heel to the back of his knee and bit into his shoulder, the one that was bleeding. He groaned in pain and his hold loosened for a second. There's my chance! I shoved him away and landed roughly on the top of a car. Pain exploded on my back. At least I didn't land on my head. Damn, that hurt. But, I got away.

I was horribly wrong, since the bull let go of the wire thing and dug his knee into my stomach. I gave a choked cry of pain. The windows on the car were all smashed and the top was even more dented than when I first landed on it. He grabbed me by my hair and flung me into the streets. Thank God most people walked to this area of the city, or otherwise I'd be hit by a car. Wait, then what was that car doing there? Oh crap, it was Lucci's car. I didn't have any more time to think about it because the bull guy went back on offense and almost smashed my head further into the ground. Almost. I rolled away and got back on my feet.

Right now it was a standoff between the two of us. His weak points. Shoulder and head. I removed my hoodie so that I was now in only a red sleeveless shirt and my jeans. I immediately was in a fighting stance and now, it was my turn. Wait, I could get some information out of this guy. "Why were you trying to kidnap me?" I began.

"The original plan was to execute you so that Lucci would have no reason for staying here anymore." He had a really deep voice. No really, he's on par with Kid or Papa in the deep voice contest. He continued, "However, it would only fuel his insanity and he would become nothing more than a weapon gone AWOL. It would make much more sense to kidnap you and force him to give in."

"Insanity? What do you mean? Lucci's not insane!" I protested.

"You really don't know anything about him do you?" I was taken aback by this. As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. "And with that fact, I'm curious." He sounded sincere, but it was hard to tell with that deep voice of his. "Why do you keep fighting for him?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I retorted, "Because he's always protecting me. He always looks out for me. Regardless of what I know about him or not, the Lucci I see and know will always be the man I love! And I will fight for him no matter what!" I declared loudly.

"You don't plan on giving up him? What if I told you how many people he's killed? What if I told you how indifferent he was to their suffering? What if I told you how much of a beast he really is?" My eyes narrowed at this news.

"I wouldn't give a damn!" I yelled as I charged and aimed a punch at him. He easily dodged and countered with a sidekick that I blocked with my arms forming an 'x' across my chest.

"I wonder how long it will take before you surrender," he muttered.

I merely leered at him. "Until I die." With that, we charged at each other and exchanged blows rapidly. He had the advantage of being both fast and larger than me, but that didn't sway me in the slightest. I was fast, too. The bull blocked all of my attacks easily, but I still kept trying. Again and again. Never stopping. I won't stop. These guys won't hurt Lucci in any way!

I grit my teeth as he punched me in the jaw. I returned the favor by grabbing his arm and flipping him over until he landed harshly on the empty street. I was about to hit him until the bastard fell unconscious, but he disappeared. Like, actually, he fricking  **disappeared**. Feeling a deep, throbbing ache, I knew he had stabbed me in the side and was behind me. He twisted it and I bit my lip as to not give him the pleasure of knowing I was in a crapload of hurt right now. I heard the familiar clocking of a gun along with the iron smell of blood.

"Maybe it would be easier just to kill you," he said as he pulled the knife out. I had to take a step in front of me in order to keep my balance. He fired, but I dodged it despite the wound I had. Wait, how'd I do that? I haven't been fighting this seriously since I took on that Eneru bastard. That stiff self-proclaiming god asshole almost killed me, by the way. At this moment, I remembered exactly how I beat that guy. I didn't think about my movements. I just acted and got lost in the flow of the battle. It was a side of me that I reserved only for serious battle and I felt the need to bring it out right now. I cracked my neck, then my knuckles. I let that side of me loose and the bull guy never saw it coming.

I was faster than him. The bull was also slowing down to his two bullet wounds. That helped. I was accurately hitting his weak points, not just his wounds, but in the body itself. There are certain points that if hit just right, you can take down your enemy in no time. All the beatings he took from me resulting him in him looking as if he was about to pass out. For the finishing blow, I grabbed both sides of his head, smashed his face on my knee, and then took him out by hitting the back of his neck with my elbow. The bull guy didn't get back up.

I had to find Lucci, and fast. He would help me. I glanced up and I saw that no one was in the mall anymore. So I aimlessly ran to the streets to find him, Kaku, or Jyabra. I clutched my side and hoped to find him soon. I heard voices in the alleyway up ahead, and I peered over to see Lucci and Kalifa together. What was Lucci doing with her? My boyfriend was holding a gun to her at point blank range. I listened in on their conversation.

"Blueno's already gotten hold of him by now. I hope he didn't go too far and kill him." she mocked. Lucci said nothing in return. "Do you remember when we were together, nah, Lucci?" her tone was seductive as it was clear that she was distracting him.

"Don't underestimate Luffy. And unfortunately, I do remember," he stated.

"Aw, don't be like that,  _darling_. You know, I always think about it. Especially when you were rough with me…" she flirted. I felt anger rise up in me. Was it anger? No, this was pure, green-eyed jealousy. I wanted to tell her to get the hell away from my boyfriend, but I kept it all inside.

"That was then, and it's annoying to dwell on it."

"You aren't still angry about Argentina, right?" she had a fake innocence to her expression.

"You did leave me to die, but I was over that incident long ago. I'm furious with you for a whole different reason now," he responded. Kalifa didn't answer. "You attempted to take Luffy away from me."

"Oh, him? I guess I did. Though, I never expected you to end up with a kid like him," she commented. "I didn't think you were into men and women, Lucci." I wanted to punch her for the way she said Lucci's name. My hand curled into a fist and I gripped my wound even harder. "But I don't care about those things." She looped her leg around Lucci's waist, grabbed his tie, and leaned in closely to him, "Tell me, what does he have that I don't?" The blonde pushed her lips against Lucci's. Oh, that was  _it_. I'm going to kill her. Lucci shoved her off and put his forearm to her neck, and the barrel of the gun was resting on her forehead. Kalifa was slightly choking now, judging from her pained expression.

"Never do that again." Lucci ordered. Kalifa had a confused and hurt expression, not just from the arm that cut off her air supply, but from the rejection Lucci had given her. I knew this just by reading her face. "As for your question, I could tell you every reason imaginable as to why I prefer him over you. He's loyal to me, he sees me as a person rather than a sex object, he's never once betrayed me, any argument we've had, I was at fault, and every time he sees me, he either voices it out loud or I can see how much he truly loves me. That was something you lacked entirely. And this is only the tip of the iceberg," he stated. My eyes widened. Did he really mean that? Lucci…

I turned to see that he had removed his arm from her. "Get out of my sight. I'm letting you live solely because I refuse to do any action that might upset Luffy. But, if you dare to come back here, I will blow your damn head off." I gulped. He really can be frightening. I looked again and saw that she was gone. I slowly put myself into Lucci's line of sight and panted. The damn wound! "Luffy!" he exclaimed.

"The bull guy is down, shishishi," I smiled. But it faded as I recalled that I was mad at him. "Let's go, Jyabra and Kaku are probably waiting for us and-," I stopped when he called my name. "What? We have to go."

"Luffy," he repeated.

"You know, with everything that's happened… I can't help but wonder, why do you hide so much from me?" I bit my lip. "Can't you trust me?" I saw his expression remained the same. "When will you stop lying to me?" I bet I sounded really pathetic with my cracking voice. He let a little emotion seep through his eyes. He began walking towards me. I kept eye contact with him. "Please, don't come any closer," I begged. He stopped right then and there. "I don't like this. I don't want to see you as a murderer but I just have to because you don't say anything otherwise." I closed my eyes to prevent the tears from flowing. Dammit, not now! I opened them again and Lucci had appeared right in front of me. I gasped. Was he going to hurt me? Kill me? "No, d-don't," I weakly pleaded. I was surprised when I felt his arms around me. "Lucci, let-"

" _Mi dispiace_ , Luffy.  _Mi dispiace tanto_ ," he whispered. He was speaking Italian. I didn't know what he was saying. Was he mad?

"W-What?" I weakly uttered.

He took a deep breath in. "I'm sorry, Luffy. I'm so sorry." I was in shock. Lucci was sorry? "For everything," he clarified. "I understand how much you detest me right now, but if this is the last time I can hold you like this, please, let me cherish it for a bit longer."

"Okay." I slowly wrapped my free hand around him. "I forgive you, Lucci," I said softly. He pulled away slightly.

"How? After what I've put you through… You're being far to forgiving," he concluded.

"No, I'm not," I replied. "I forgive the Lucci I know. The Lucci in front of me. I don't think I can forgive the Lucci from Enies Lobby," I swallowed. I felt him nod in acceptance. "At least, not yet."

"Why on Earth would you consider forgiving that part of me?" he questioned.

"Because the Lucci from Enies Lobby and the Lucci in front of me are the same person. They're both Lucci. And I love Lucci… so very much," I took in the scent of the fancy coat he was wearing. You'd think he'd be going to a wedding or something. I smiled at my own thought, and that Lucci's smell calmed me down. "So I'll probably end up forgiving that Lucci anyways." Lucci's feelings were pouring through his emotional wall. I tried to label the feelings I saw on his face, but before I could, he gently grabbed my chin and leaned forward. He stopped, though.

"May I?" he inquired.

"Well, we aren't fighting anymore, right? Isn't it natural for boyfriends to kiss each other?" I giggled and wrapped both of my arms tightly around his neck, connecting my lips onto his. He relaxed in the hold and kissed me back with passion.

He broke for air and breathed, "I love you."

"Me, too," I beamed before kissing him again. We broke apart after we heard sobbing. I turned and saw both Jyabra and Kaku. Jyabra was dramatically crying.

"K-Kid…! That was so damn beautiful!" he wailed. Kaku just shook his head. Jyabra walked towards me and snatched me away from Lucci. He held me tight. "I just gotta hug you! And then kiss you because you are an amazing human being!" He started to smooch my forehead and cheek multiple times before Lucci snagged me back.

"Back off," he growled. I snickered.

"Oh, Luffy," I heard Kaku.

"Yeah?"

"Are you bleeding?" He pointed to my wound. Oh, yeah…

This was Lucci's cue to pick me up bridal style and rapidly sprint to the nearest hospital. Kaku and Jyabra followed him close behind. I held on to him and took comfort in his hold. I was so happy right now.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mi dispiace: I'm sorry  
> Mi dispiace tanto: I'm so sorry


	12. Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where some of the Archive warnings come in, so if you're uncomfortable with any of it, I advise you not to read this

My eyes fluttered open and my ceiling filled my vision. It was blurry at first, my eyes decided to be nice and let me see clearly after a while. Stretching with a yawn, I almost got off out my bed. I flinched a little and looked down to see the stitches made on my side. Damn bull guy. The stitches would be taken out in a few weeks, and they were itchy and annoying. But having Lucci by my side the entire time made me so very happy while I was being treated. He held my hand, too.

Then Ace showed up. I think this was the first time I saw those two get along. Or at least not fight. All was so well, until Ace found out that CP9 did that to me. And I thought  _Sanji_  had a foul mouth. After receiving odd glances from the doctors and other people in the emergency room, Ace then changed languages and started to cuss my boyfriend out in Japanese. This was the weird part. I think Lucci and Ace both know Japanese and Italian, because Lucci replied in his native language, and Ace replied in his.

_"Musekinin'na shawā!"_

"Vaffanculo, stronzo!"

There was an indescribable feeling in me that things were about to get violent. I was just there watching them yell at each other, not really understanding what was going on. I only knew what Ace was saying, and I sucked in my lips as to not comment on how vulgar he was. This went on for a good fifteen minutes, until the nurse kicked them out.

Back to the present, I sluggishly got up and headed down the hall, to the kitchen. I plopped down into a chair and leaned forward on the table, resting my head on my arms. I was hungry. Maybe I should call Sanji and beg him to cook for me. He'll probably say no. Lucci, then. Wait, can Lucci cook? That'd be awesome! He doesn't say no to me often, so I bet he would made delicious food for me all the time! A number of Italian dishes floated through my head and I began to drool. I almost fell back into dreamland thinking of all the meals I could eat. Ace kept that from happening, though.

He gently ruffled my hair and kissed my forehead. I felt heat rush to my face. Why'd he do that? Ace usually wasn't so affectionate. I mean, when we were younger, yeah, but now… I was snapped out of my thoughts by, "Happy Birthday, little brother!" He flashed a large grin, similar to the ones I have. We both inherited that from Mom. Papa would tell me how much I smiled like her back and it was nice to know I could make him happy just by smiling like Mom. Wait… birthday? Mine? Today? I quickly checked the calendar and my jaw slightly dropped. May 5.

"Oi, Ace! It's my birthday!" I exclaimed. A light chuckled escaped his mouth. My brother sat down in a chair across from me.

"I know,  _baka otouto_ ," he replied. That was a nickname he gave to me a while back. He uses "Lu" more often, though. "You're already 18 and…" he was quiet for a moment. "Dear god, my little brother is a legal adult." He slowly rubbed his temples. "That is a terrifying thought."

"Oi!" I shouted and puffed my cheeks out. Ace just laughed again. I had forgotten how nice it was to hear that from him. I let my head relax in my hands as I just listened to him laugh. A small smile made its way to my face.

"What are you staring at? Is there something on my face?" I heard a hypothetical record scratch and froze. Damn, he caught me staring!

"No." I think I said that too fast. Ace just shrugged it off. "What did you get me for my birthday?" I eagerly asked.

"Well, you'll find out." I grinned at this. I wondered what it was!

"You can tell me!" I leaned over the table and beamed at him. A poke to the nose was his response. He pushed my head upwards with his index finger.

"Not happening. Don't you know the meaning of 'surprise'?"

"I can pretend to be surprised!" I argued.

"Yeah, what's the word I'm looking for? It's on the tip of my tongue…" I just blinked. Ace had forgotten a word? I though he was smart! "Oh, yeah,  _no_." Wait… that was sarcasm, wasn't it? I pouted. He moved out of his chair and stood up. "Well, I'm heading out."

"Where?" I asked. He waved me off. Ace put on a short-sleeved, collared, and red shirt. The older man then added his orange hat to his outfit. There was no need to put on pants, since he was already wearing some.

"Just out. See you!" With that, he closed the door behind him, leaving me alone. A loud growl exited my tummy. I was still hungry…

* * *

The sweltering sun was overwhelming, so I treated myself to ice cream. I went to a shop called "SAD" in the Punk Hazard District. The owner of the shop was named Harpy Monet, and to be honest, she was weird. Sure, she was nice to me, and smiled a lot, but she had this thing for birds and frozen things. I guess the latter is why she opened an ice cream shop. The former, it was strange. She told me once that she wanted to have bird arms and feet. It would be cool to fly and all, but it was going a little overboard, right? She had long, light green hair that was wavy and covered over one of her eyes every once in a while. A lot of guys think she's really pretty, but I was neutral about it. Law took me here once, since we were partnered up for a project. I think Monet is in love with him or something, because she kept flirting with him and making sure he saw her cleavage whenever she came by our table. I don't really blame her. Law is a handsome guy. |I had a small crush on him once, but it went away|Though, he didn't seem to feel the same as Monet, since he kept his attention on me, discussing what we were going to do.

I don't really know if Law actually likes anyone that way. He always is buried in his studies and gets dark circles under his eyes due to that. So he never gets any time to hang out with anyone. He can't stand being around Kid, and due to my last conversation with the redhead, he felt the same. I try to hang out with him, and he always seems pleased whenever I ask. But he always works so hard, therefore, doesn't have time, even though I could see he really wanted to. He's studying to be a surgeon and he's super smart. Maybe he could help me figure out what my present was! Or help me get into Raftel! But I wouldn't want to bug him right now. My friend volunteers at the hospital on Sundays.

Monet already remembered my favorite flavor, since I came here a bunch more times after Law treated me here. She handed the cone to me, and I paid her. With a smile, she inquired, "'ow are you today, Monsieur Luffy?"

"I'm great! Even more so since it's my birthday," I informed her. She clapped her hands together once.

"Zen I believe anozeer cone eez en order. On zee house," she said in her thick accent.

"Really?!" I cried out in joy. "You're so nice!" I gave her a grin.

" _Oui, oui_ , Monsieur Luffy," the green-hair woman replied. She spoke French, just like Sanji. And like me, but in French instead of Japanese, sometimes little phrases in French snuck out in her sentences. As she prepared the cone, she began humming. When she was almost done, she began to sing 'Happy Birthday' to me. The cone entered my other hand as she finished. I thanked her. Another tug upwards of her lips.

I started licking the dripping cone of my first ice cream. Man, it was melting all over my hand! The place had a few people in it, but no one really came here, even on a hot day. The Punk Hazard District was a separated part of the city, and Law told me it wasn't the best idea to come here without him. "Monsieur Luffy," she said. I stopped my licking for the moment to hear what she had to say. "Could you pleeze tell me 'ow Monsieur Law is? I'm afraid 'e 'azn't come around 'ere in a while. I'm wohrreed."

"Oh, Law?" I tried to think how he was when I last saw him. "Same as usual." Monet seemed happy to hear this. "Say, Monet?" A 'hm?" was her answer. "Do you like Law or something?" Red made it to her face. "Shishishi, so I was right." She supported her head with one hand and looped her waist with the other.

"I cannot 'elp eet. Monsieur Law eez… 'ow you zay… zexzy?" She seemed to daze off after that, with a goofy smile on her face. "Perapz 'e eez available?" the owner stated with curiosity.

"Well, he's not dating anyone, if that's what you mean." The bird-obsessed woman was really cheerful after that.

"Zen I zood azk 'im out, no?"

"Go for it, if that's what you want." I then waved to her, to the best of my abilities with an ice cream in each hand, and she waved back.

"Pleeze tell Monsieur Law to ztop by!" I nodded and left the shop, focusing on my ice cream. I began my stroll walking down the sidewalk. I haven't had a call or a text from any of my friends. Weird. I thought they would wish my happy birthday. Did they forget? No, they couldn't have. They have to be planning something, I knew it! I kept walking and began to notice something… I didn't recognize this part of the district. I didn't know where I was. Wow, this must be how Zoro feels all the time! Well, if I kept walking, I'd get out, right?

Boy, was I wrong. After about two hours of aimlessly walking around, I knew I shouldn't hope anymore. I had finished both ice creams and was now eating the cone of the second one. A chill up my spine wasn't enough warning that I was in a bad situation. A hand shot out and covered my mouth and nose with a cloth thing. It smelled weird. Oh, now I feel sleepy… My eyes closed and that was the last thing I remembered.

* * *

I awoke to being in a room. It was dimly lit and I soon realized that I couldn't move my arms. What the hell? My legs were bound, too. What was going on?

"Awake now, are you?" That voice… I knew it from somewhere. My eyes narrowed as to try and figure out who this bastard was. A dark chuckle came from him and I got goose bumps on my arms. Dammit, who was he?

"Show yourself!" I demanded.

"Always so feisty… D-Chan." Why use my fake name? What was going on? "Remember me?" He moved his face into the light and I immediately did.

"You're that Bellamy bastard! Let me go, you jerk!" I shouted. I tugged on my bounds, but to no avail.

"You know, I almost had my way with you back there." He was whispering in my ear and it felt so weird. "Now that your boyfriend isn't here to stop me, let's continue where we left off…"

"Screw you!" I spat at him. He ignored this and began to suck on my neck. I tried to twist my body away from him, but he held me firm.

"How about I torture you a bit for that jab to the head from last time…?" I didn't mean to freeze up. I wasn't scared of this guy! No way! I'll get out of here and kick his ass! "Unless you can tell me where that boyfriend of yours is hiding. I might let you go…"

"What do you care?!"

"He tarnished my reputation. I'm not one to forgive easily, D-Chan."

"Don't you dare think of hurting him!" I screamed. Despite my current situation, Lucci needed to stay out of this. I would protect him. I received a punch in the jaw as a response.

"Then we have a long night ahead of us, D-Chan." That evil laugh never failed to piss me off.

* * *

I don't know how long he kept me there. That asshole beat me all over my arms, legs, chest, he avoided my face, thankfully. Save for that first punch to the jaw. He even pulled a knife on me and slashed my chest. I was injected with this strange stuff after a while. This guy managed to take of my shirt, but he hadn't touched me down there yet. The hell I would let him. I was saving myself for Lucci. I had refused to tell him anything about Lucci. That only earned me more torture. He'd eventually get tired, right?

I thought too soon, because he began to violate me again. He bit my shoulder so hard it bled. I didn't want him touching me. I felt so disgusting. The bastard started to remove my pants. I kept jerking away and fighting. He wrapped his hand around my throat and I couldn't breathe. Small gasps tried to force their way outside to get air. He was going to kill me at this rate. My eyes slowly rolled backwards and the world was black for a moment. Bellamy then let go. Rough coughs tore out of me and I cherished sweet oxygen. The dick managed to get my pants off and grinded against me. It didn't feel good. It hurt, if anything. Large hands held my chin and he force me to kiss him. I let out a low growl and bit his lip. Really hard. I expected to be hit again, but he just smirked.

"Nice to know you like it rough." What the hell was that supposed to mean?! "I'm sure I'll fuck you ten times better than that boyfriend of yours can." I spat blood in his face. He dug his knife into my arm. I couldn't hold the scream that erupted.

"Let me go already, you bastard!"

"You really never run out of fight, do you?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "That just makes it all the more interesting."

I won't let him win. He will not get to Lucci.

A knock on the door seemed to pause time itself. "What the fuck do you want?!" he yelled.

A female voice answered, "My apologies, but Lord Doflamingo has returned. He wants to speak to you about  _it_." Bellamy sneered, but got off of me.

"You've got the Devil's Luck, kid. I'm sure my father and I both can make use of you." What kind of sick-minded guy is he? The man then walked out.

Doflamingo was here? Who was that, anyways?

The door remained slightly ajar, and the woman who spoke to Bellamy walked in. She had dark green hair. Damn, I'm seeing a lot of women with green hair today. Her face was soft, and she felt… motherly. Yeah, I think that was the word. Looking cautiously behind her, she turned to me and undid my bounds.

"What are you doing?" She shushed me. Then she took me out of that accursed room, and led me by the hand. I found myself passing through a fancy hallway and there was a separation of the wall to another room. The woman paused and glanced around the corner of the separation. Her hand held mine tighter.

"We have to be fast," she spoke quietly. I nodded in understanding. A few voices came from the separation, and I recognized that Bellamy bastard's voice. I examined her expression and read her face. She was counting down from ten. The countdown ended and we sprinted across the separation rapidly, but quietly. I caught a glimpse of a huge, blonde guy with a flamingo-looking coat, but that was it. We didn't stop running, and made our way through a series of rooms, earning odd looks. Well, a woman was leading a half-naked dude out of a mansion, so it was only normal to react that way. Out the back door we went, and she led me to what was probably her car. "Here," she said. I was handed my phone. Hey, I wondered where it was!

"Why are you helping me?" Yeah, I mean, she doesn't even know me.

"I'm an old friend of Shanks." I was surprised at that. "My name is Makino, and you must be Luffy. It's lovely to meet you," she smiled and held her hand out. I smiled back.

"You really saved me back there."

"No, it's the least I could do to help out the Akagami Family. I'm a part of it, you know." I had never seen her before though. "Look." She pulled up her button-up shirt and revealed the Akagami Family crest tattooed on her. Wow, she really was! You get those tattoos when you're 18. At any rate, we must hurry and get out of here."

I was about to ask her what she was doing at Mingo's place, but my phone rang. My savior told me not to answer it just yet. Makino had put her key in the ignition and drove off the property. Once we were about ten minutes on the freeway, I noticed how dark it had gotten. What time was it? I darted my eyes to the digital clock in her car and saw that it was 9:37 PM. He had kept me there for nearly the entire day. I hope no one was worried about me. Another ring from my phone drew me from my line of thought. Makino made an exit into what looked like the Jaya District. She pulled over and told me it was okay to answer the phone now.

"Luffy?" I was greeted with the voice of my recently-found pink-haired friend.

"Hey Bonney!" I tried my best to sound normal, and I flinched when Makino touched me. The woman just insinuated that she was going to clean my cuts, since that was all she could do at the moment.

"Where have you been?! I've been trying to contact you forever!" I felt a little bad. No one needed to worry. I was fine.

"Sorry, I think I fell asleep on my couch or something," I replied. She laughed it off.

"Sounds like you! Anyways, get your butt over to your boyfriend's house!" Wait… house? Lucci had a house? I thought he was living in a dorm. I mean, Cipher Pol must have offered him a home, but I didn't know he chose to live in there… I must have voiced my confusion, since Bonney groaned. "You don't know it. I'll give you the address, so listen carefully, got it?" I responded with a positive noise, masking the sting I sensed from the cream Makino was rubbing on my shoulder wound. I tucked the phone in between my other shoulder and neck, while getting out a piece of paper and a pencil that I found in the glove compartment. Messy words that I could read |but I doubted that anyone else could| made their way onto the paper as she told me the address. "And dress formally!" she added as an afterthought. With that, she hung up. Makino seemed to be done, too.

"I have a tuxedo that I can get from the trunk."

"Why?"

"I had to be in disguise on multiple occasions, and it helps in a situation like this, right? You could be about my son's size." I was so relaxed at her smile. It was so friendly and trusting. I took off my seatbelt and got in the backseat. Sure enough, I was handed a vest-tuxedo with matching pants, a red-collared shirt, and socks and shoes. It took me about five minutes to get entirely read, but my other arch nemesis, Mr. Tie, had gotten in my way. My hero just chuckled and helped fix my tie with her soft hands.

When I was all dressed, she drove me to the address and my mouth dropped. That was a  _big_  house. It might be even bigger than Mingo's. Makino patted my arm. "Are you all set?" I nodded and thanked her for everything. She told me it was no big deal, but I hugged her tightly anyways. Even her scent made me feel at ease. It was like having a mom… although I wasn't quite sure what that felt like. I left the car and waved goodbye to her as she drove away.

My wounds still stung from the lotion she used, but I knew the pain would eventually disappear. I knocked on the door, but got no answer. Weird. I tried opening it, and… it was unlocked. I'd think Lucci would lock the front door of his house. Taking a step it, the room was pitch black. Was I at the wrong place? A spotlight turned on, nearly blinding me. It moved to the center of the room and I saw Ace. He was wearing fancy clothes too and extended his hand. My ears picked up the light sound of a piano. Furrowing my eyebrows, I just walked over to him.

"Ace, what's going on?" I asked. My brother just gave me a smile and took my hand. I was pulled against him and faster music started to play. It sounded like the tango or something. I'm so glad Kokoro took the time to teach me that too, or else it'd be pretty awkward right now. Well, it still kind of was embarrassing since there was not even an inch between me and Ace. Being this close to him… it didn't dislike it, but it was a bit much considering my rough day. The violin playing was really nice, I noted.

 _"Will drive you, will drive you, will drive you…"_ The singer began.  _"MAD."_  I was twirled away from Ace and found myself in Zoro's arms, and he began to tango with me. My green-haired friend was dressed elegantly as well. He chuckled at my baffled expression.

 _"Roxanne,_  
You don't have to put  
On that red light.  
Walk the streets for money,  
You don't care if  
It's wrong or if it is right."

I was tugged by the elbow and wound up with Sanji, who had a blue, poka-dotted shirt under his tuxedo.

 _"Roxanne,_  
You don't have to wear  
That dress tonight.  
Roxanne,  
You don't have to sell your  
Body to the night" Another twirl and I was with Law now. The future surgeon smirked and held me tighter than anyone so far, but I was too puzzled to notice.

 _" His eyes upon your face,_  
His hand upon your hand,  
His lips caress your skin,  
It's more than I can stand!" With a kiss to the cheek, Law gently pushed me and Kid was dancing with me now. The latter had a stern look on his face. I think that was his normal expression.

Throughout the whole song, I was passed back and forth between all the people I knew. Jyabra, Kaku, Vivi, Usopp, I even danced with Nami and Bonney! The music picked up drastically and I found myself in the center of the room. Everyone was dancing and clapping rhythmically to the song. A tap on the shoulder and I looked over but no one was there. Another tap, and I looked over the other shoulder, but no one was there. I pouted, getting a little frustrated. I faced the front and Lucci was held me and dipped me. The song ended and he kissed me. Everyone clapped and screamed "Happy Birthday, Luffy!" as loud as humanly possible. Lucci moved from my face and pulled me back to my feet.

I couldn't help but blink stupidly. I just grinned and said, "Thanks!"

Kid had walked up to me. "You'd better be thankful. We worked our asses off rehearsing that."

Nami pulled me away and said, "Luffy, as your biggest shipper, I'd like to give you my present first!" What was a shipper? "In honor of my fan club, who could not be here today, because  _someone_  told me not to," she sent a glare to Lucci, "here!" I was given an insanely large book and I almost doubled over because of how heavy it was.

"Why'd you give me a dictionary?"

Nami just giggled. "No, it's our fanfiction we've been writing about you. It's divided into you and Lucci, you and Zoro, you and Law, you and Sanji, you and Ace, and more!" I was somewhat scared as to what she wrote about us, wait… me and  **Ace**? Did she know I liked him that way? No, she would've pestered me for pictures of us together. "I might have written a few ideas that you and Lucci can try," she winked. I didn't really understand that, but everyone else was a bit mortified at that comment. I thanked her nonetheless.

I was gifted an entire buffet and a cake by Sanji, some new videogames from Usopp, a book about pirates from Vivi, Bonney just shared her food and declared that her gift, a gym membership to train with Zoro, and so many other cool stuff! I hadn't gotten my gift from Lucci yet… Ooh! Cake time!

I wolfed it down so fast, that even Vivi told me to slow down. The party was great and everyone was happy. Nami wouldn't let this chance slip by, though. She used her looks to get Sanji to hug me, and he still had hearts in his eyes from looking at Nami. Click, the camera went off and Nami was giggling hysterically. While everyone else was partying, Lucci led me upstairs without anyone noticing and I remembered how I still hadn't gotten my present from him. We walked to what I assumed to be his bedroom and he closed the door behind him and locked it.

"What are we doing here?" I asked innocently.

"Well, you're going to get your present from me here." I was excited now. I literally jumped up and down in joy. It must be in this room somewhere. There was another door and I ran to it and peered in. That had to be the largest bathroom I had ever seen.

"Is it in here?" I yelled while looking in cabinets and the enormous bathtub and the separate shower. He told me no and I left that room. I then darted my gaze to another door and ran to it. I tripped down a bunch of stairs and landed hard. My wounds still hurt, dammit.

"That's the wine cellar," I heard him say. Oh… "It's not there if that's what you're wondering." I huffed and made my way back upstairs. I checked under the bed, but I couldn't find anything.

"You have my gift!" I concluded.

"In a way, yes."

"Where?"

"Who knows," he leaned back and spread his legs a bit. "Why don't you search me and find out?" I shuddered in a good way at his words, but I didn't really know why. I looked him over and couldn't see anything at first glance. He told me that it could be underneath his coat and shirt. I followed his advice and removed them, but still nothing. I noticed how toned Lucci was. It made me a bit red. His matching tattoos on both of his arms now stood out. They were squares with 'x's through them. He also had a large scar on his back, but I never asked about it, despite being really curious about it. My boyfriend told me that it could be in his pockets, so I looked there. I tried his front and back pockets, but couldn't find any sort of present. Where was it? "Perhaps you aren't looking  _hard_  enough," his husky voice sent shivers down my spine.

I had an idea. I forced him to stand up with legs apart and then patted him down like they do in cop shows to look for concealed weapons or something. Nothing. He took off his shoes and socks, and then flipped me over onto the bed. "Do you have an idea of what it is now?" I gulped and nodded.

"Would you like to unwrap your gift?" The room was getting warm again. I nodded and he began to kiss along my jawline before reaching my lips. Were we really going to do  _it_? I was really happy, but nervous. What if I'm not good enough? I didn't have time for those thoughts as he tangled his tongue with mine and I was lost to the kiss. He undid my vest and shirt, without breaking the kiss. They were quickly moved to the floor. It was all I could do not to drown in his arms right now. This was real. This was happening. Lucci was going to make love to me. Pulling away with a thin line of saliva, he went for my neck, but froze. I was panting and wondered why he stopped. He was looking right at my wounds in horror. I looked down in shame. I had forgotten about them. "What happened?" Uh oh. His voice was really dangerous.

"Lucci, it's fine-"

"Who did this to you?" I looked away again. "Luffy," he warned.

"It was that Bellamy guy…" I'm not a good liar to begin with, so might as well tell the truth, right? "But I'm okay, really!" Lucci didn't look convinced. "I got away before he did anything like that to me, so it's okay!"

"While I'm relieved that he didn't rape you, he tried to. And look what he's done to you!" he was really angry.

"Lucci…" I wrapped my arms around his neck. "I just want to forget about that and focus only on you. Please make me forget, Lucci," I pleaded. A long silence followed before he sighed.

"Alright." I smiled softly. His hand sneaked around and grasped my lower back. " _Mi angelo_ , may I taint you?" he muttered. He didn't need to ask.

"Yeah," I answered anyways. And he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra:
> 
> Ace: Hey have any of you guys seen Luffy?
> 
> Kaku: Actually I haven't. Lucci's missing too. Jyabra, have you seen them?
> 
> Jyabra: Yeah they went upstairs together. *drinks his wine*
> 
> Ace: What?!
> 
> Jyabra: Yeah, the kitten's probably screwing your brother's brains out right now.
> 
> Ace: *giving out murderous aura*
> 
> Kaku: Um, we need a tranquilizer over here.
> 
> End
> 
> Musekinin'na shawā: Irresponsible douche
> 
> Vaffanculo, stronzo: Fuck off, asshole
> 
> Oui Oui: Yes, Yes
> 
> Baka otouto: Idiot little brother
> 
> Mio Angelo: my angel


	13. Visitor

Lucci began by being gentle. He was wary of my wounds, and held me like a fragile ornament. He knew exactly where to touch, and I loved that. Currently, he had his mouth on that spot between my neck and shoulder and, ooh… That felt really nice. His goatee tickled my neck and I giggled. But it turned into a moan when Lucci sucked there. Teeth nibbled on my skin, almost a bite. So good… I let him know that by letting small moans escape my mouth. Even though it was embarrassing, I couldn't help it. My fingers massaged his black hair. It was really soft, like silk. A skilled tongue licked up my neck and along my jaw. It moved across that to the other side of my neck. I winced a bit when it came in contact with my skin. I knew that was where Bellamy had bitten me. I yelped when teeth sunk into my shoulder. He bit me!

"What was that for?!" I whined at him.

"I'm marking what's mine," he whispered into my ear. He licked the shell of my ear and nipped at the lobe. A pleasant shudder ran through me.

Well, two can play at that game. With great effort |Lucci was heavier than I expected, but I guess that was from all his muscle|, I flipped him over so that I was on top. A look of mild surprise came across his face. A grin spread across my face, "Well, that goes for me, too!" I latched my mouth onto his pale neck and heard his breath hitch. I mimicked what he did to me, and Lucci was panting a little bit. I reacted a lot more when he did this to me… I guess I wasn't as good at it as he was.

A small red mark was left on his neck from my work. I think it was supposed to get darker later on. My lips found his and I resumed kissing him. His hands snaked around my waist and went even lower. I felt even more heat rise to my face as Lucci groped my butt cheeks. Even though I was on top, it was obvious that he was in control here.

The pop of a button. The sound of a zipper being undone. The feeling of my pants loosening and sliding down my hips. These barely made it in my mind as I was too focused on how good it was to be like this with Lucci. He rose to a sitting position, taking me up with him. I just… I don't even know how to describe how happy I was. How good it all felt. How right it felt. He grabbed my hips and raised me up, so that I was about a couple of inches taller than him. What was he-?

"A-Aah~!" I moaned out as a wet tongue circled my nipple. Biting, sucking, he did everything that just made me feel like I was in heaven. One hand removed itself from my waist and gave attention to my other nipple. I gnawed on my finger as to not moan too loudly, but it all felt so good! I gripped on to him like he was my lifeline. I think I pulled his hair. He growled in response. "Sorry…" I muttered. A flip, and boom, I was on my back again with him hovering above me.

"Don't be," he smirked. "Pull harder, if you'd like," he said. Wait, he liked it? I thought it would have hurt him. "Raise your hips," he ordered. I did so and poof, my pants were slid completely off. I was in naught but my boxers. Heh, naught is a fun word. Lucci tried to take them off too. I nervously slid a few inches away. Lucci noticed this and looked at me with those green eyes of his.

"Sorry… I'm kinda nervous," I confessed. Lucci kissed my cheek, my jaw, and my neck as a reply.

"Just relax." He moved his hand to my crotch and squeezed there. I groaned in pleasure. The attention he gave to me down there had me moaning louder than ever. I was so distracted, that I didn't even notice when my boxers were pulled off. I did notice that Lucci moved away. My eyes were shut at the time, and I opened one to see why he moved off me. Oh, he was undoing his belt and pants. I carefully watched as layer by layer, he removed all clothing off himself. I don't usually admire people's looks this much but hot damn, Lucci was sexy. Crap, I'm staring at him too much! I quickly covered my eyes in hope that he didn't notice. I heard him chuckle.

"Don't laugh…" I pouted. I cracked an eye open to see him reaching over to the drawer next to us. He pulled out this bottle thingy and slicked his fingers with whatever that thing was. I froze as something cold was touching my very personal area. It circled there, teasingly until it thrust into me. It was weird, but I think this was good weird. I soon realized it was his finger.

"Spread your legs." I did what he told me and another finger was added. This was really weird! I've experimented with touching myself before, but never back there! Lucci moved his fingers in a scissor-like motion that had me squirming beneath him. It was almost as if he was looking for something in there.

"Hyaa!" I screamed out. Whatever he was looking for, I think he found it. That was the most incredible feeling in my life. He continued to press that spot and reduced me to nothing but pants and moans. My fingers clutched the bed sheets as I could only think of how good it felt. "Haah… ngn…. Oh, Lucci…" I groaned. My boyfriend latched his mouth to my nipple again and sucked. "Oh… hgnn… hah…  _K-kimochi ii!_ " Was that English? Heck, I couldn't tell left from right anymore. Another finger was added and while it increased my pleasure, it hurt a bit. Suddenly, he removed his fingers and I mewled as they left me. Why'd he stop?

He grabbed my hips and another, bigger thing was prodding at my hole. It was his-! I felt my face redden more so than ever. Just like his fingers, it was cool and wet with that strange liquid. Lucci slowly slid into me and I bit my lip as tears pricked at my eyes. It hurt! I must have let out a whimper, because Lucci began to massage my thighs as he slid in while kissing me.

Once he was seated in me, one hand moved from my thigh to my left hand. Lucci took hold of it and intertwined his fingers with mine. "It will pass," he reassured me. "Breathe, Luffy." Inhale. Exhale. It required a long time, but I managed to get used to the feeling of being this full.

"You can move…" I said. The pain was dulling. Okay he's moving, moving! Oh lord, that felt nice. Lucci thrust into me and I just lay there. It didn't hurt, but I didn't get that feeling that I got before when his fingers were in me. From what I've heard, this is the part that's supposed to feel good the most. Why didn't it- "AAH! Oh, oh God!" Okay, never mind. He found the spot for the second time and it felt oh-so-good. Again and again, he hit that spot and I started to feel something build up inside me. My mouth was slightly open and I think I was drooling a bit. The warmth radiating off him, the harsh thrusts, the grunts in my ear, and my member being rubbed against him with each thrust were all helping that tension in my lower gut get bigger and bigger. He lifted my leg up on his shoulder and continued his movements. "Ngahh… D-Deep…!" The pleasure rocked its way from the tip of my spine to the back of my skull. I didn't know it was possible to feel that good. At this moment, I realized something. I wanted more. So much more. "L-Lucci…! Harder!" I begged.

My boyfriend did go harder. And faster. Oh, I was so close. I don't know to what, but something in my lower tummy felt like it was going to burst. I never wanted it to stop. I don't know how, but he was slamming into me even more than before. Almost there… "Nyaagn hah hahh -Oh Lucci- hah hgnn ugh!" I didn't even bother trying to hide my moans anymore. I was screaming in pleasure and I did not care who heard. I wrapped my arm around Lucci's back and dug my fingernails into his scarred back. My eyes widened and my vision was white for a moment as I called out Lucci's name as loud as possible. White stuff was spurting out of my dick. I arched my back and tightened my inside muscles.

Lucci growled and thrust a few more times before reaching what I did and I felt hot liquid shoot inside me. Collapsing on top of me, he pulled out. I felt his hand still connected to mine from before. He never let go… And neither did I. My lips found his and I smiled into the kiss. "That was amazing," I commented. I let out a gasp as my hips were raised and I was on his lap. Something was poking my thigh. "A-Again?!" I flushed red.

"Again," he smirked.

* * *

I scrunched my eyes open and blink lazily. What time was it? Where was I, anyways? I turned over to look out the window. Wait, my window is not that big. This wasn't my room! I started to panic until I turned my head the other way. Lucci was sitting there with glasses, reading a book. My gaze went lower and the blanket was covering what needed to be covered, but I could see the side of his upper thigh and he wasn't wearing any underwear. Memories flooded in my brain when I looked down and saw that I was naked, too. I yelped in surprise and recognition and flailed out of the bed. A loud crash of my skull hitting the carpet was heard.

"Hmm?" Lucci looked up from his book in acknowledgement. "Is that always how you get up in the mornings, or is today just special?"

I clawed my way back to the bed and let out a sigh. "That surprised me…" I felt myself blush. "So… we uh-…"

"Made love? Yes, and you are quite the screamer," he said. The blush deepened and I looked down. He put his hand on the back of my head and leaned his forehead against mine. "It's not bad. It lets me know that you feel as much pleasure as I do." I meekly nodded. "Happy Birthday," he said before pulling away. Lucci put his book down and took off his glasses. Lucci pulled the blanket over my waist and held me close. I felt a vibration coming from his chest. Was he humming or something?

"Lucci, what's that noise?" I asked. He looked at me curiously and the noise stopped. Slowly, I pieced it together. "Lucci, are you purring?" I met his gaze. Before he could reply, I said, "That's so cool!" My eyes sparkled in awe. "How do you do that?"

"Who knows?" A hand ran through my hair. I snuggled into his neck and learned that I fit perfectly under his chin. The sound of his breathing almost lulled me back to sleep.

Four knocks on the door and a green-haired girl in a maid's uniform opened it. "Young Master, the chef was wondering if- ," she paused. One glance at Lucci and I and she covered her eyes with her hands and turned around to face the wall. "I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING!" she shrieked. "I-I'm so sorry!"

"What do you want, Caimie?" Lucci sounded angry that our moment was interrupted.

"T-The chef wanted to know what you would like prepared for breakfast!"

Lucci turned to me. "Well?"

My stomach rumbled. "Anything," I said.

"Caimie, tell the chef to make large amounts of whatever you decide 'anything' to be, and learn to wait until I allow you in my room." The maid nodded rapidly, but she was still facing the wall.

"Then I'll go and tell him right now!" she exclaimed. She still had her eyes covered, so she walked into the wall twice. Thrice. She creaked an eye open to find the door and leave.

"You have a maid?" I inquired.

"Yes, and other servants as well."

"Where'd you get all that money?"

"Inheritance and work," he answered. Inheritance?

Before I could close my big mouth, I asked, "From Cipher Pol?" Lucci tensed at the mention of it, but he relaxed immediately afterwards.

"No. From my personal family."

"Oh, you have one, too?" I grinned. "I want to meet Lucci's family!"

"No, you don't. I can barely handle them. Especially  _her_."

"Who's her?" I tilted my head.

"Someone I hope you never have the infortune of meeting." A pause. "And what did you mean by 'you have one, too?'"

"Oh, I'm the heir to the Akagami Family," I smiled. Lucci's eyes got wide. Uh oh. I wasn't supposed to tell him that. He blinked owlishly and his mouth dropped a little. "Sorry I didn't tell you before. I'm not really supposed to…" Lucci let out a laugh. "Oi, what's so funny?" He's never laughed before.  _Never._

"It's just so ironic. Years of constantly training and desperate attempts to find out your identity, and I end up with you today." I don't really understand irony that much.

Another knocks and I heard Caimie's voice. "Y-You have a visitor, young master!"

"Who?" Lucci's eyes narrowed.

"He said his name was Ben Beckman!" she exclaimed.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Caimie: *comes into kitchen with red face*
> 
> Hatchi: Nyu! Is the Young Master headed downstairs? He'll have to wait a- Nyu, why is your face so red?
> 
> Caimie: Hatchin! I j-just... the Young Master and... a boy... and...
> 
> Hatchi: Nyu, you mean Luffy?
> 
> Caimie: YOU MEAN YOU KNOW HIM?!
> 
> Hatchi: Nyu, he enjoys my takoyaki.
> 
> Caimie: WHY DID I NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS?!
> 
> Hatchi: Nyu... it's the Young Master's business. He's not very trusting, so to see him with someone who makes him so happy, is truly wonderful.
> 
> Caimie: Well, I should get tea for them, right? If Sir Luffy can make the Young Master smile, we surely owe him a lot!
> 
> Hatchi: Go ahead. So why was your face red again?
> 
> Caimei: THEY DID THE DO!
> 
> Hatchi: Nyuu...? The 'do'?
> 
> *doorbell rings*
> 
> Caimie: I'll get it Hatchin!
> 
> ...
> 
> Caimie: How may I help you?
> 
> Ben: Yeah, I was told Luffy was here and-
> 
> Caimie: THEY DID THE DO!
> 
> Ben: Huh?
> 
> kimochi ii: It feels good


	14. Ben Beckman the Badass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben's an intellectual badass. Fact. Also Luffy crams for OP exams. Pretty much this AU's version of ACT/SAT.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize very sincerely for the wait. My grandfather died, and that's why I was away. It's not much, but it was the best at the moment I could do.

Ben was here? That was so cool! I wanted to rush out to greet him, hum Lucci halted my movements. I turned and tilted my head in question.

 

“You need you clean up for the day, unless you wish to greet him in your birthday suit,” Lucci smugly said. I felt my head burst up in a heat of embarrassment and I darted my gaze away. I untangled myself from him and was about to make a beeline for the bathroom, but Lucci pulled me back in and nuzzled my neck lovingly. “Let’s go together.”

 

I immediately agreed, not knowing what he implied. That led to the most interesting shower of my life.

 

Once we were done washing up after our activities, Lucci lent me some clothes that were definitely too big for me, and led me downstairs by the hand. I smiled at the display of affection. I just hoped Ben wouldn’t shoot Lucci in between the eyes because of it. That horrifying thought aside, my smiled widened as I greeted my family member. I had a lot of male figures in my life, I noted. Maybe Nami was right, I needed a woman’s touch in my life. When she first said that to me, I just blatantly pointed out how I preferred a man’s touch and that’s sort of how I came out to her. Needless to say, not having a mom or sister was tough, but I had Nami, Vivi, Bonney, even Monet! I always liked meeting new people and it didn’t matter if they were a man or woman to me. Ben’s voice yanked me out of my thoughts.

 

“Luffy, you’re spacing out again,” he said. His mouth fiddled with a cigarette as he spoke. I was about to ask what he said, but he held a hand up. “I know, I need to repeat what I said.” I just sheepishly grinned at him. He knows me so well! He’s also the smartest guy I know! Before I could get any deeper into my thoughts, Ben snapped his fingers in front of my face. “Oi, attention span needs to be here at the moment, okay?” I nodded. Crossing his arms, Ben started, “So, before anything else, you have thirty seconds to explain to me why I’m at _his_ ,” he gestured to Lucci, “house instead of your apartment, why you’re wearing his clothes-,” I gulped. How’d he know? “-They’re way too big for you and I estimated that they could fit him, also you both are holding hands,” he elaborated. “And given all that, I assume the worst, so why am I not putting a bullet through his head?” Ben checked his fancy watch. “Thirty seconds. Go.”

 

I was really bad at stuff like this! Oh damn, what do I do? I guess I could try to answer those million questions he threw at me, but my brain hurt! “Uh…” I mumbled. “Lucci’s my boyfriend and… uh… we had a party to celebrate my birthday! Yeah!” I grinned. “I stayed over and uh… we, well, you kind of figured it out… and you won’t gun him down because you’re in a really great mood today?” I squeaked out the last part really fast.

 

Ben stared at me, and then at Lucci. He sighed then scratched the back of his head. “Well how much do you know about each other?”

 

This time, Lucci spoke, “He knows of my previous connection to Enies Lobby and CP9. I know of his current connection to the Akagami family.”

 

Ben had an exasperated look on his face. He looked so done with everything. “Well, shit…,” he took a drag and then spoke, “ _‘Two households, both alike in dignity…’_ ” he smirked. “Don’t let it end that way,” he warned, “or any other tragic way, this isn’t Shakespeare. I want Luffy to be able to make his own decisions, and also to be happy. If he found that in you, then alright.”

 

“Alright?” I repeated.

 

“Yeah.” I broke out of Lucci’s hand to hug Ben. He huffed with a smirk, and then returned the hug. “One more thing,” he promised. “I brought you the family’s gift to you. Here,” he let go and handed me a large wrapped box. “We could’ve just sent it, but how many times do I get to see you? And with this,” he motioned to Lucci and me, “whole deal, I’m going to have to face a bitchfit from Shanks, so thanks in advance for that, but we really were considering having you move to Ireland permanently after you graduate.” My eyes widened.

 

“Living with you guys in Ireland…?” I responded. Ben nodded.

 

“But we’ll have to work things out considering you have him.”

 

I smiled fondly at Ben. He always knew what I was thinking. “Yeah… I mean, living with everyone would be amazing, but I want a life with Lucci. When I left for a couple years, I missed him so much. But I knew I was coming back to see him so I could push through it. I couldn’t imagine living knowing I was never going to see him again.”

 

Ben whistled. “I haven’t seen you care for someone so much since Ace.” I blushed like a tomato at his words. Did he know how I felt about Ace? Or worse, did he tell anyone? I was still confused at how I was emotionally drawn towards Ace, but I knew there was a line brothers shouldn’t cross. I was never able to cross that line and I probably never should. Ace didn’t feel the same way, it was obvious he was oblivious. Hehe, that was cleverly funny to think of, I guess. I wonder what would happen if I said it aloud…

 

“Oh boy, we’ve lost him again,” came Ben’s voice.

 

 

Ben mentioned that he would stay about a month or two in the States, and then return home. He still trusted Lucci “about as far as he could throw him”, whatever that meant, and would keep an eye on him for safety reasons. Yeesh, couldn’t Lucci get a break here?! First it was Ace, then it was CP9, oh yeah, and Bonney kicked him somewhere in between there, now the Family? Everyone was out to get him! He was, as Vivi would say, “ _Persona non grata_ 1”. She takes Latin, isn’t that cool? It sounds like she’s speaking five languages at once. She says it’s because Latin is the root of many words in western languages. Vivi knows all kinds of neat stuff.

 

Speaking of knowing things, I had to study for the OP test really badly! It wasn’t well-known as an exam for colleges, but if you passed it, you’d have a guaranteed seat in _Shinsekai_. It was in only three months! I sob inwardly every time I have to study for it. Lucci and Ace agreed on something for once. They wanted me to focus on my studies for this test, and have helped me stay on track. They take away my food if I don’t focus, the meanies! Even so, I concentrate a whole lot better when they do so. Don’t tell them I said that.

 

Raftel was a mysterious place to me. However, Ace told me that he knew a few people who went there and the area it’s in is pretty safe. You just have to watch out for certain people, like the rivaling Supernovas. I already knew to watch out for Kid, because he’s seriously scary when he’s competitive. Law isn’t someone I worry too much about because he’s never done anything to hurt me, and I trust him. He’s just devilishly smart… and attractive... That could be a distraction when I’m taking the test if he’s in the room. Maybe if I come in wearing sunglasses, a Hawaiian shirt, and a beard, Law won’t recognize me. That way he can’t use his good looks to distract me! I’ll even go under a fake name, “Lucy”. I’ve got it all figured out. Take that, Law.

 

I heard a distant sneeze2 somewhere, but chose to ignore it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1- Literally "unwanted person". My mother took Latin and uses this phrase when my dog is in trouble. Only she mixes it up and calls him "Doggy non grata"  
> 2- It's believed in Japan that when you sneeze, it means someone's talking about you, or in this case, thinking.
> 
> Omake:
> 
> Translations:  
> 3- Commander?  
> 4- Commander, it's time  
> 5- Specifically, what time is it?
> 
> A loud knocking came at the double doors. It was insistent, and to all extents, annoying as hell. Without warning, they swung open, slamming against the wall in retaliation, and a male figure entered the bedroom.
> 
> “Ceannasaí(3)?” he asked. A muffled groan came as a reply. The figure strode down the lightly curved steps on the left instead of the right. His commander preferred it that way. Enter down on the left, exit up on the right. “Ceannasaí, tá sé in am(4).”
> 
> “Go sonrach, cén t-am é(5)?”
> 
> Dead silence. A very smooth, musical Irish voice slipped into English tongue. His accent sprinkled into his words, but not so deep that he was incomprehensible. “Time for me to shove my foot up your arse if you don’t get up." He put a hand through his long hair, and brushed the golden mane out of his eyes.
> 
>  
> 
> "And here I thought I wasn't a morning person." Red hair peaked out of the covers. "Usually you don't wake me up unless we have a meeting, or something comes up." With a yawn, a stretch that came with a porn-star groan that made the other man very uncomfortable, and a crack of the back, the redhead sat up. "What's so important that you needed to disturb my beauty sleep, oh dear subordinate of mine? Shouldn't you be studying for that test? The OR-whatsit?" 
> 
>  
> 
> "The OP Exam," the blond corrected.
> 
>  
> 
> "Yeah, it's in three months right?" The redhead leaned against his mountain of pillows with silk cases. "At any rate, we should get you to the States... Ben's already there, y'know?" 
> 
>  
> 
> "I was informed. Did he meet the Young Master?" he inquired.
> 
>  
> 
> "You shouldn't be so formal, Luffy's family after all. As soon as we get the word, he'll come home," a smile lit up the room. "You miss him, right?"
> 
>  
> 
> A light blush on sun-kissed skin appeared as the blonde averted his gaze. "That's irrelevant."
> 
>  
> 
> "I'm sure he misses you, too."
> 
>  
> 
> "It's unlikely that he'll remember me."
> 
>  
> 
> "How on God's green earth are you the Massacre Man of the Akagami Family when at the same time you have absolutely no confidence when it comes to Luffy?!" the redhead sighed, exasperated. After a brief moment of silence between the two, he spoke again, "Killer, you know how dense he can be. If you don't tell him how you feel, he'll never know."
> 
>  
> 
> "Yeah..."
> 
>  
> 
> A tense silence broke out. Killer knew Shanks was right. He had been in love with the boy since they had met, but there was no telling what could happen in their line of work. He could die on any order or be forced to be undercover and never see Luffy again. Moreover, Luffy was protected by Roronoa Zoro and Portgas D. Ace.
> 
>  
> 
> Rumors of CP9 in the U.S. had been rising and Killer knew a war between families could start. Their allies were strong but with the Boa Family undecided, it was a matter of who got to Russia first to win them over. That would change the tide of the fight and possibly have Cipherl Pol back down. But for now, things were in the mist.
> 
> "Killer, why did you wake me up?"
> 
> "You have a call from Sir Beckman. He said it was urgent."


	15. Exams Are A KIller

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luffy briefly meets Killer

Stepping out of that test room was the biggest sense of relief I’ve felt in a long time. They practically kicked me out of there after I was done with my OP Exam. I guess falling asleep halfway through the exam was unappreciated by them. They’re like Smokey! Meanies! But on the bright side, they didn’t bop me on the head, and I was finally done after spending two forevers taking that stupid test! I stretched my arms out and smiled with glee. Freedom!

 

I quickly pulled out my phone and began texting Lucci, asking him to pick me up, since I only drive my car in Ireland and that’s like… a gazillion miles away right now. Almost finished texting, and here’s where I learned it’s never safe to text and _move,_ let alone text and _drive_ , since just walking had me end up smashing into someone. Well smashing into people must be a skill of mine because that’s how I met Lucci, and I run into Usopp, Nami, and Sanji all the time! Amazingly, I don’t break my nose in the process. It’s like I’m made of rubber or something… To the point, I surprised myself just as much as the blond guy in front of me. Before I could fall down, he grabbed my wrist and held my hand tightly. He then gently pulled me up to balance. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu for a second there. Oh well, it probably wasn’t anything important.

 

“Sorry about that!” I chuckled. “I wasn’t really paying-…” My voice trailed off as I took a good look my savior. To say this man was handsome was a great understatement. Long, messy blond hair. A narrow jawline that extended to his neck that was exposed from his open collar on his polka-dotted shirt. His eyes were rough and fierce at first, but softened as they focused on me for some reason. They were also two different colors, one green, and the other red. The green eye was surrounded by scar tissue that enveloped most of the upper left quadrant of his face. It reminded me of Sabo’s scar, but it seemed more carnal. His tanned skin was nothing to scoff at as it formed over his impressive build perfectly.

 

 

Why do I keep running into distracting, yet very attractive guys?! It’s like I’m cursed or I’m in one of Nami’s yaoi fanfictions! This guy looked dangerous, too. Yet I wasn’t afraid of him. I don’t know if it’s because I had a lack of common sense or if I was utterly fearless, but I felt safe with this man. And I didn’t even know his name. I blinked stupidly at this.

 

Okay that sounded ridiculous, even in _my_ head. What the hell, brain? This isn’t a frigging _kiss kiss fall in love_ scenario! Maybe I’ve been watching too much anime or something. No wait, that isn’t possible, is it? I sucked in my lips and blinked slowly.* I had been quiet and staring at him for like five straight minutes. Way to be creepy, Luffy. Maybe if I backed away slowly and kept eye contact until I turned the corner, I’d get out of this awkward situation. I started to do that, but he raised an eyebrow at my movement. Dammit, he noticed.

 

Okay, then. Plan B.

 

“Hey what’s that over there?!” I screamed and pointed behind him. My scream startled him because his multicolored eyes widened slightly, and I could hear the heels of angry test examiners about to open doors and lecture me. As soon as he whipped his head around, his beautiful blonde locks flipping to meet his movements, I booked it out of there. I felt his hand slip from mine, up to the tips of my fingers, as I ran. He never let go of my hand… Maybe he’s a foreigner. That would explain the blond hair.

 

I hid in the parking lot behind cars for the next two hours as I waited for Lucci to pick me up. When I saw his new car, since the other one had been destroyed in the fight with that bull guy, I speed walked my way over there like a robot. Why the heck not? If you’re going to be something out of the ordinary to avoid something, why not be something really, really cool?! Lucci had noticed my very odd behavior and sighed. I thought I was in the clear when he drove me home in total silence until he took a deep breath in once we arrived at his house. I’ve noticed I’m coming over there a lot now… Why doesn’t he ask me to move in with him? His question silenced my thoughts.

 

“What did you do?” he calmly asked.

 

I pulled my best liar face* and said, “Nothing really.”

 

“Am I going to have a visit from the police again?” he asked. Oh my God, that was _one_ time! I grumpily crossed my arms and glared at him.

 

“No, I just fell asleep mid-test and shouted in the halls and scared a hot foreigner and-,” Lucci pinched the bridge of his nose and cut me off.

 

“Luffy… that is not the ideal impression you want your dream school to have of you.” His eyebrow twitched. “ _Hot_ foreigner…?”

 

To shut him up before any attempted murder could occur, I kissed him on the cheek, an added, “Not as much as you, Lucci!” He seemed to accept this as he turned his head to meet mine and gently kissed me.

 

“You’re damn right.”

 

* * *

 

 

That night, I got a call from an unknown number. I didn’t answer it because Lucci was distracting me with kisses and thrusts. To this day, I don’t know who it was. They left a voicemail with a distorted voice.

 

“ _You are our new target._ ”


	16. Law of Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Law and Luffy share a private moment together. Luffy learns about Law's suffering at the hands of a certain Underworld Leader

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Implied Self-Harm, Suggested Drug Usage and Alcohol Usage

I always thought that I could keep my friends safe, no matter the situation. I always thought I could protect everyone. And I thought they would always be by my side. After all, they were my _nakama_. Yet, one by one, they were taken from me.

Looking back, it all began when I dreamt I fell into an abyss filled with blood. As I kept trying to crawl my way out, an unspeakable number of hands stained with the blood all dragged me down. They grabbed at my arms, my legs, my shirt and pants, and my face. It was all I could do not to drown. My clothes tore in the struggle, leaving rips and holes. I didn’t care, I just wanted to get away from them. The nails were starting to tear at my skin, leaving red bloody trails in their wake. One of the hands traced my scar under my cheek and the wound reopened, leaking pools of red down my face. I began to scream in pain. In a rush of panic, I managed to free one of my arms and desperately stretched my hand for freedom. I could only feel air, but I prayed for something, _anything_ to help me. Nothing did, and I fell into despair, barely holding on to my breath as I was dragged under the blood.

 

I dreamt I died. Worse, I dreamt I died _alone_.

 

When I woke up, I realized I was in an empty classroom, and Law was beside me in a desk. He was working overtime, as usual. Sometime during my nightmare I seemed to have gripped his hand tightly, but he didn’t mind at all. He accepted my hold and continued to study as if nothing had happened. Man, if it had been Kid whose hand I held instead of Law’s, the beatings I would get…

 

Law noticed that I had woken up, but paid me no mind as he continued to burn the image of a heart transplant into his eyeballs. It was times like these that I really appreciated Law as a friend. We were close once, but his medical pathway took him away. There seemed to be something else at work there, as Law’s personality became more and more twisted, as Shachi would comment. He was the only outlet I had to Law at the moment since they were childhood friends. Even he said Law was frightening him more so than ever before. It worried me. I didn’t want anything to happen to Law, let alone have him be caught up with bad people. I highly doubt he’d be caught up with things like the mafia, but gangs are still around. He wasn’t doing anything bad that I knew of, but many people believed he did.

 

Rumors of Law being addicted to drugs and alcohol were spreading around the school, or that he was a cutter, and I hated it. I didn’t know what a cutter was, but I knew it was something bad. They say it’s because he never sleeps, he’s got dark circles under his eyes, and he’s aggressive. That’s utter bullshit if I ever heard it! Law works his fingers to the bone at his medical internship and his college-level classes, that’s why he looked so tired! If people thought he was aggressive, they obviously haven’t met Kid, that’s for sure. Just thinking about how he’s misunderstood makes me so angry. It was totally unfair!

 

Law picked up on my poor mood and stopped his work for the moment. “Are you always grumpy when you wake up, or am I just a special witness to this?” The way he phrased that reminded me of how Lucci asked me how I woke up when we first slept together. “Thank you for that mental image Luffy-ya, I’ll be seeing Rob-ya naked in my nightmares.” Crap, did I say that out loud? “Yes, you did.” How is he reading my mind? Is he a mind-reader? Like Professor Xavier from X-Men? “No, I’m not a mind reader, I can tell what you’re thinking because you’re still speaking out loud, Luffy-ya.” Oh.

 

“I was just mad at how people misjudge you all the time,” I confessed. “I mean, they don’t see you for the great guy you are! I don’t care what others think about me, but it irritates me when they say mean things about you…” I huffed. Law sighed, put down his pen, and closed his book. He was still holding my hand, and I found that I was okay with that. I needed the comfort right now, especially after that dream.

 

“What sort of things do they say that bother you?”

 

“Well, some things I don’t really get, like how you’d be a cutter. What’s a cutter, Law?” His eyes went wide, and he immediately gripped his left wrist that was covered with a wristband. He had worn that for a while now, I wonder who gave that to him… Then I noticed how both of his hands were covered with wristbands. Then I noticed he was shaking. “Law? What’s wrong?”

 

“You were the last person I’d ever want to hear about that…” He let go of my hand and looked at the floor, his bangs covering his eyes. It was parallel to Lucci’s reaction to me mentioning CP9. Only this seemed different. However, it still meant that someone hurt Law. I gently took both of his tattooed hands in concern.

 

“Law, has someone hurt you? Who was it?” I couldn’t hide the growing anger in my voice. Law was silent. “Law!” he jolted in surprise at my rage. No one hurts my friends. No one. I half expected him to react like Lucci did and push me away, but he surprised me instead.

 

I received a broken smile when Law looked up, and he squeezed my hands once before saying, “With all the things you can do, Luffy-ya, saving me isn’t one of them.” I’ve been punched, kicked, hit, beaten and even shot, but nothing was as painful to me as Law’s expression was.

 

“W-Why not?” Panic seeped into me. Law closed his eyes and sighed gently. He reopened them and looked me dead in the eye.

 

“Because some wounds don’t heal, Luffy-ya.” I knew that all too well. “They keep reopening and causing pain.” I didn’t want to hear this. I didn’t want to hear that Law was suffering and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it. But all I can do is listen to him. Law needed me for that. I won’t abandon him. All this time, he’s been in pain, all alone. Well, no more.

“Law,” I squeezed his hands, “I will save you. Just tell me who’s responsible for your pain.” I leaned forward and put my head on his shoulder. “Please…” I whispered. “I need to hear you ask for me to save you. I can’t do anything right now, but if you let me help,” I paused. “…I will.”

 

Law began to tremble again. I let go of his hands to adjust my position and embrace him. Shakily, he hugged me back. He didn’t make a sound, but I felt his tears on my shirt. “Luffy-ya…” I pulled back enough to look him in the eyes. My heart shattered in two at his expression, but I waited for his answer. His voice had fallen to a murmur as he broke from the hug. “I want you to save me, but he’ll kill you… That’s why…” Law choked back a sob. “You just can’t save me. No one can.”

 

“What, is that all?” I smiled softly. Law looked at me in shock. “I’ve faced some really strong guys in my time, so don’t worry! I’ll kick his ass!”

 

“That’s not the point!” he snapped. “He’s far beyond your strength! Doflamingo will-!” he slapped his hand over his mouth and stared at me like a deer in headlights. Tears still flowed freely from his eyes.

 

“So it’s that guy,” I said. Law looked at me in question. “Don’t worry Law,” I walked past him and put my hand on his shoulder, “Anyone who dares make my _nakama_ cry… I won’t forgive him, and I won’t hold back. Just you wait Law, I’ll make him pay,” I growled.

 

Law bit his lip and covered his eyes with his left hand, “You don’t know what he’s capable of, and you’re only going to fight him for making me cry? That’s… such an idiotic reason,” he laughed lightly.

 

“Well, I’m kind of an idiot, so…” Law laughed at bit more. His real smile came to his face as he did so. He wiped his tears away, but his eyes looked really red. I laughed with him. “Just wait for me, okay? I promise I’ll save you.” I took his hand and held it tightly.

 

“Until then, I’ll wait for you, Luffy-ya.” He gripped my hand right back and brought it to his lips. Gently he kissed my hand. I felt my face heat up at that. “So please, just don’t die.” I grinned brightly.

 

“Yeah, I won’t! Believe in me!”

 

He smiled and kissed my cheek. “I already do,” he breathed into my ear. “More than you know.” My face burnt up at his closeness. “Thank you, Luffy-ya.”

 

“Yeah, don’t worry about it!” I quickly said and made my way out the door. I looked back once before venturing onwards. I could’ve sworn Law mouth something, but I couldn’t make out what it was.

 

That marked the start of my battle against the Don Quixote Family.


	17. NOT AN UPDATE

Hey Everyone! I’m rising from the grave to announce my return to the fan fiction world! However, rereading this made me cringe so hard I scared my dog haha. There are so many inconsistencies and I can tell my mind was a mess when I wrote some of the chapters. Does anyone want me to rewrite it and start over? Or should I just never look back and continue?? I just opened Word for the first time in years and found that I still have a rough draft of the next chapter. Please leave feedback, otherwise lack of support will make me feel that I should drop the story altogether ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


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